An exploration of links between levels of tourism development and impacts on the social facet of residents’ quality of life

Tourism is often recognized as having significant impacts on the quality of life (QOL) of the people who live and work in tourism destinations. Despite an extensive body of literature on tourism impacts, very little research has focused detailed attention on tourism and the social dimensions of residents’ QOL. The available evidence in this area suggests that social impacts of tourism are related to the level and type of tourism development at a destination. This chapter will explore these proposed linkages by comparing three regional Australian destinations with different levels and styles of tourism on a series of measures of residents’ QOL. The investigation of social impacts of tourism at the study locations was carried out in 2013–2014 and consisted of two components – an analysis of available relevant secondary data and a survey of residents. Consistent with previous research, a higher scale of tourism development was linked to increased crime, reduced volunteering and perceived influence over community development, and more/better community services. However, the results did not demonstrate a higher emotional connection to place, community pride, and needs fulfilment that are commonly assigned to benefits of tourism development. The chapter describes the complex pattern of results that emerged from the analyses before discussing the implications of these for further research and theoretical development in understanding the social impacts of tourism.