PRIVATE OPERATOR MANAGEMENT, CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, AND VISITOR SATISFACTION IN CAVE TOURISM: A PARALLEL-MEDIATION ANALYSIS OF THE OXALIS PORTFOLIO IN VIETNAM

While private operators increasingly manage ecologically sensitive protected areas, how their management practices relate to visitor satisfaction remains underexplored in cave-tourism research. This study examines a dual parallel mediation model in which Private Operator Management is associated with Visitor Satisfaction, both directly and indirectly through Environmental Conservation Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Visitor Environmental Awareness. Data were collected via a 30-item online questionnaire from 317 visitors across seven cave-tour formats operated by Oxalis Adventure Tours in Phong Nha- Kẻ Bàng National Park and Tú Làn, Vietnam, in the 2024-2025 season. SPSS-based analysis validated the measurement model via confirmatory factor analysis and assessed mediation using bootstrapped confidence intervals (5,000 iterations; Hayes, 2018), with the Baron and Kenny (1986) steps retained as a comparability baseline. The model explains 83.2% of the variance in satisfaction; both indirect effects are significant, accounting for 25.9% (CSR) and 22.8% (awareness) of the total effect. An exploratory subgroup analysis is consistent with a crossover: first-time visitors weight the awareness pathway, repeat visitors the CSR pathway. Common-method-variance and discriminant-validity limitations are discussed.