EXPLORING THE ROLE OF PLACE ATTACHMENT IN SHAPING SATISFACTION AMONG ADVENTURE TOURISTS IN MALAYSIA

Authors

  • Mohd Helme Basal FACULTY OF SPORT SCIENCE AND RECREATION, UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA
  • Azlizam Aziz 1Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Nor Akmar Abdul Aziz Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Mohd Aswad Ramlan Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Shahazwan Mat Yusoff Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Muhammad Solehin Maarop

Keywords:

Adventure tourism, Place attachment, Tourists satisfaction, Place affect, Place identity, Malaysia

Abstract

Adventure tourism is increasingly popular in ecologically rich destinations like Malaysia offering immersive experiences that foster place attachment. This study explores the impact of place attachment on tourist satisfaction among adventure tourists in Malaysia, conceptualizing attachment into four dimensions: place affect, place identity, place dependence, and place social bonding. A quantitative approach was employed, with survey data collected from 402 adventure tourists in Gopeng, Perak, ensuring robust statistical analysis. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), the study found that place affect (β = 0.704, p < 0.001) and place identity (β = 0.122, p = 0.031) positively influence satisfaction, emphasizing the role of emotional and self-identity connections in enhancing tourist experiences. In contrast, place dependence (β = -0.095, p = 0.108) and place social bonding (β = -0.097, p = 0.028) had insignificant or negative effects, suggesting that functional reliance and social interactions are less critical in adventure tourism satisfaction. The model explained 45% of the variance (R² = 0.45) in satisfaction, with place affect exhibiting the highest predictive power (f² = 0.290). Findings underscore the need for destination managers to prioritize emotional engagement, storytelling, and immersive experiences to strengthen attachment and satisfaction. The study contributes to sustainable tourism management by highlighting the significance of emotional and identity-based connections. Future research should adopt longitudinal and qualitative approaches to examine evolving place attachment dynamics over time.

Author Biographies

Azlizam Aziz, 1Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Professor at Department of Recreation and Ecotourism, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia.

Nor Akmar Abdul Aziz, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Senior Lecturer at Department of Recreation and Ecotourism, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia.

 

Mohd Aswad Ramlan, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Senior Lecturer at the Department of Recreation and Ecotourism, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia. 

Shahazwan Mat Yusoff, Faculty of Forestry and Environment, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

Senior Lecturer at the Department of Curriculum & Instructional Technology, Faculty of Education, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

Muhammad Solehin Maarop

Chief Operating Officer at Gopeng Glamping Park, Malaysia 

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Published

2025-03-15

How to Cite

Basal, M. H., Aziz, A., Abdul Aziz, N. A., Ramlan, M. A., Mat Yusoff, S. ., & Maarop, M. S. . (2025). EXPLORING THE ROLE OF PLACE ATTACHMENT IN SHAPING SATISFACTION AMONG ADVENTURE TOURISTS IN MALAYSIA. Malaysian Journal of Sport Science and Recreation, 21(1), 1–13. Retrieved from https://journal.uitm.edu.my/ojs/index.php/MJSSR/article/view/5592