Transforming Awe to Action: The Impact of Red Culture-Inspired Awe on Residents' Support for Tourism Development

In recent years, the integration of red culture into rural areas has led to a remarkable upsurge in red tourism in the revolutionary old areas. The residents of these tourist destinations play a crucial role as carriers and stakeholders in tourism development. However, the role of residents' red culture-inspired awe in tourism development and its underlying mechanisms have not yet been thoroughly explored. Against this backdrop, this study aimed to fill this research gap. This study is firmly grounded in the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. To achieve the research objectives, a quasi-experimental design and a field survey method were employed. In the quasi-experimental study, materials related to the red culture of Jinggangshan were carefully selected to induce awe. Participants were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups and a series of measurements were conducted, including assessments of red culture-inspired awe, red cultural identity, and support for tourism development. For the field survey, the Jinxiang Coastal Red Tourism Area in Lufeng City, Guangdong Province, was chosen as the research site. Questionnaires were designed and distributed to collect data on the relevant variables after conducting reliability and validity tests. Our study revealed several significant findings. First, awe inspired by red culture has a direct and positive impact on residents' support for tourism development. This indicates that in the context of red tourism, residents' awe towards local red culture can effectively stimulate their prosocial behaviors. Second, red cultural identity mediates the relationship between red culture-inspired awe and support for tourism development. It was found that when residents experienced a higher level of red culture-inspired awe, their identification with red culture became stronger, which in turn led to a greater inclination to support tourism development. Third, trust in the government also serves as a mediator. Red culture-inspired awe can enhance residents' trust in the government, and this trust significantly influences their attitude towards tourism development policies and their willingness to support tourism. Finally, there exists a serial mediating effect of red cultural identity and trust in the government in this process. This study made several important contributions. Theoretically, this broadens the application scope of the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions in the field of red tourism, providing a new perspective for understanding resident attitudes towards tourism development. It also deepens our understanding of the role of emotions in promoting cultural identity and trust in the government. This study offers valuable suggestions for sustainable development of red tourism. For example, it emphasizes the importance of protecting and inheriting red cultural resources to enhance residents' feelings of awe, promote residents' in-depth identification with red culture through various means, and establish a transparent policy communication mechanism to strengthen residents' trust in the government. Future research should expand the sample range and explore the dynamic changes and long-term effects of red culture-inspired awe to provide more comprehensive theoretical support and practical guidance for the development of red tourism.