Could Tourism Empower Community in Social Dimension?

This paper was not presented at the conference.

Abstract

This paper was not presented at the conference.

Social empowerment through tourism can be defined as, by being involved in tourism development, residents see their community become more cohesive, with an increased connection within the community. Tourism form that provides opportunities for the community to connect can significantly influence residents' support for tourism development and acknowledgment of tourism's contribution to their community. The research aim is to analyze the relationship between community involvement in tourism and community perceptions regarding social empowerment. The research method used is a quantitative approach. The research result shows that the respondents positively perceive social empowerment whether they are involved in tourism development. However, the existence of tourism destinations seems to influence the respondent's perception related to the social condition of their community.