Residents' attitude towards domestic tourists explained by contact, emotional solidarity and social distance

Abstract Despite the fact that emotional solidarity, social distance, and contact theory have been widely used to explain resident tourist interaction, these three concepts were never considered in tandem in investigating the intergroup attitude within a domestic tourism setting. To understand what type of interaction improves emotional solidarity and reduces social distance, and how emotional solidarity affects social distance, this study sought to measure the factors explaining emotional solidarity and social distance by focusing on the frequency and the nature of interaction in domestic tourism. Study hypotheses proposed that frequency of interaction and different types of activities that residents engage in with visitors explain both emotional solidarity and social distance, and emotional solidarity in return explains social distance. All hypotheses were partially supported with the findings, confirming the validity of the contact theory in a domestic tourism setting and underscoring the importance of interaction in residents' attitudes toward tourists.