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C O N F E R E N C E ON S C I E N T I F I C & S O C I A L R E S E A R C H

Measuring the Satisfaction Level of Tourists: Empirical Evidence

from Taman egara Visitors

Normala Daud, Sofiah Abdul Rahman, Mior Harris Mior Harun and Ainul Azreen Adam
Faculty of Business Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA,
Shah Alam, MALAYSIA
normala648@salam.uitm.edu.my

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to analyse the satisfaction level of tourists visiting Taman Negara.
Intention in sustainable practices and participation in sustainable activities were posited to influence
satisfaction. Data were collected from 230 tourists who had traveled to Taman Negara using factor
analysis dimensions of Likert scales. The data for this study was gathered through questionnaires that
were distributed to a cross section of tourists in Taman Negara in various manners in order to secure a
diverse range of tourists. Results indicated that tourists were most satisfied with ‘setting and
atmosphere’, followed by ‘quality of experience’, and activities in Taman Negara. It was also found
that tourists that participated in sustainable activities have a positive and significant effect on
satisfaction.

Keywords: satisfaction level, tourists, intention in sustainable practices, participation in sustainable

activities.

1. ITRODUCTIO

This paper is part of a larger study being conducted on Sustainable Tourism in Taman Negara. Tourism is
a form of recreation and leisure away from "home". Thus a tourist is often defined as a person who visits
for rest, relaxation and entertainment. Tourism for many countries is a most important source of income,
engine of growth in many areas. For some, it is amongst their top industries. Understanding what drives
satisfaction for a tourist is one of the most relevant areas of research for the tourism industry (Petrick,
2003; Prebensen, 2006), as satisfied tourists tend to transmit their positive experience to others and to
repeat their visit (Alen, Rodriguez and Fraiz, 2007; Hallowell, 1996; Kozak and Rimmington, 2000;
Pizam, 1994; Operman, 2000). The literature reveals that the level of tourist satisfaction with a particular
trip is the result of different factors (Peter and Olson, 1996). Numerous studies have been carried out to
measure the degree of tourist satisfaction, but very few papers have focused on analyzing the antecedents
behind this variable and the possible relationships between them. This paper aims at determining the level
of satisfaction amongst tourists visiting Taman Negara and whether the intention in sustainable practices
and participation in sustainable activities influence the satisfaction level of tourists.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Tourist Satisfaction

Although there are many definitions of satisfaction, it is generally recognized as a post-purchase construct
that is related to how a consumer likes or dislikes a service or product after experiencing it (Woodside,
Frey and Daly, 1989). In terms of travel, Moutinho (1987) notes that this post-purchase construct is
primarily a function of pre-travel expectations and travel experiences. Similarly, Pizam, Neumann and
Reichel (1978) define tourist satisfaction as the result of comparison between “a tourist’s experience at the
destination visited and the expectation about the destination”. According to Jang and Feng (2007) and
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Kozak and Rimmington (2000), satisfaction is one of the most relevant variables when analyzing tourist
behavior, as it influences the choice of destination, the consumption of products and services, and the
decision to return. For this reason, tourist’s satisfaction has been a priority subject of research in recent
years. Tourist satisfaction with a particular destination may be the result of multiple factors, including the
expectations generated before and during the trip, as well as the tourist’s perception of the service
received. The literature has analyzed tourist satisfaction from a wide range of contexts: cultural trips
(Ross and Iso-Ahola; 1991); research into tourist satisfaction with the chosen destination (Chon & Olsen,
1991; Danaher & Arweiler, 1996; Joppe, Martin and Waalen, 2001; Kozak & Rimmington, 2000).

2.2 Sustainable Tourism

Travellers choose their destinations to fulfill a range of motivations. Apart from visiting relatives and
friends or to shop, eat, rest and recreate in cities, it is the natural and cultural features of a country which
are the most important draw-cards – the mountains, beaches, forests and wildlife, and the people. National
parks, marine parks and other protected areas are among the most important natural environments which
are tourist destinations. The responsibility implicit in managing a national park is protection and
enhancement of its flora, fauna and landscapes, so any nature tourism in protected areas must be
sustainable. Managing for sustainability cannot be left to chance, and systems for monitoring impacts and
managing use are essential.

An attempt to define sustainable tourism brought about a myriad of terms including ecotourism,
environmentally and culturally responsible tourism, ethical tourism, alternative tourism and nature
tourism. So numerous are the interpretation of sustainable tourism that there are over 300 definitions of
this concept (Jayawardena, 2003). For the purpose of clarification and delimitation, the terms ecotourism
and nature tourism - the two most commonly associated and contrasted terms with sustainable tourism are
summarized in this section.

Nature tourism is “travel to natural places”.

Ecotourism is "responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well-
being of local people".
Sustainable tourism is the “development that meets the needs of present tourists and host regions while
protecting and enhancing opportunities for the future. It is envisaged as leading to management of all
resources in such a way that economic, social and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while maintaining
cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, biological diversity, and life support systems” World
Tourism Organization (2001).
Nature tourism, therefore, is a passive activity with little participation of the local community, while
the opposite is true for ecotourism. In contrast, an eco tourist is the one who does not only visits a natural
attraction but also hires local guides and stays with the local community. As a result, from the perspective
of a host destination, ecotourism is very much encouraged and aggressively promoted. Sustainable
tourism extends the concept of ecotourism as it embraces all segments of the industry with guidelines and
criteria that seek to reduce environmental impacts, particularly the use of non-renewable resources, using
measurable benchmarks, and to improve tourism’s contribution to sustainable development and
environmental conservation. Figure 1 illustrates the concept of sustainable tourism and its linkages to
different aspects of tourism. As noted in Figure 1, three key elements: environmental, economic and
socio-cultural aspects of tourism development must exist and a suitable balance must be established
between these three dimensions to guarantee long term sustainability. In short, sustainable tourism should:
1) Make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development,
maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity,
2) Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural
heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance.

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3) Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socioeconomic benefits to all stakeholders
that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning opportunities and social
services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation.

Figure 1: The Concept of Sustainable Tourism

2.3 Challenges in Sustainable Tourism.

Putting in place the practice of sustainable tourism is a challenge to tourism developers as sustainable
tourism requires strong commitment and participation of all relevant stakeholders. Likewise, achieving
sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the
necessary preventive and/or corrective measures whenever necessary. Further, a strong political leadership
is needed to ensure wide participation and consensus building.
The quality of the environment, both natural and man-made, which is essential to tourism also present
several challenges for sustainable tourism practices. Tourism's relationship with the environment is
complex. It involves many activities that can have adverse environmental effects. Many of these impacts
are linked with the construction of general infrastructure such as roads and airports, and of tourism
facilities, including resorts, hotels, restaurants, shops, golf courses and marinas. The negative impacts of
tourism development can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends on. Hence,
getting the suppliers of tourism products to adopt sustainable tourism is another critical challenge facing
destination managers/policy makers. Driven by excessive needs for short tem profitability, it is common
for these suppliers to opt for a less sustainable development practice.
On the demand side, sustainable tourism also calls for maintaining a high level of tourist satisfaction
and ensuring a meaningful experience to the tourist. Satisfaction will lead to positive word of mouth,
repeat visits, price inelasticity, and higher profitability. Customer satisfaction has been often regarded as
the most accurate barometer for the success of a company. Thus, catchphrases such as ‘Customer is the
King’ and ‘Customer is always Right’ mark the growing acceptance that customer needs have to be
satisfied at any cost. Failure will lead to consumers defecting to competing companies/
products/destinations. Keeping tourists satisfied, however, is challenging, as they are heterogeneous in
nature and seek different tourism products/experiences. However, while an increasing number of
consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious in their purchase behaviours, there are also
tourists who are harmful to the environment and disrespectful to the socio-cultural authenticity of host
communities. Identifying and attracting the ‘right’ visitors, therefore, is a must, if park managers are
concerned with sustainable tourism. In short, park managers must make a conscious effort to draw tourists
from an established market segment that practices sustainable tourism and try to reduce the number of
tourists practicing unsustainable tourism to a destination.
Thus, a key challenge to sustainable demand management, from the demand side therefore is, the
activities of market identification, market positioning and market reach. Looking from this perspective,
successful sustainable tourism calls for a strong tourist database that accounts the characteristics of
holiday makers, their travel motives, knowledge and attitudes towards sustainable tourism, intention to
act, responsible behaviour, and travel satisfaction. Such an understanding provides opportunities for
planners and tourist operators to capitalize on emerging markets and develop actions that are more
efficient and effective.
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3. METHODOLOGY

To obtain data for the purpose of this study, a field study using the survey method was employed. A
survey was conducted among the tourists visiting Taman Negara by distributing a set of structured
questionnaire to tourists arriving at Taman Negara. Two sets of questionnaire was made available, one in
English and another was a translation of the first one, in Bahasa Melayu. There was a need to have
bilingual questionnaires because visitors that come to Taman Negara include both local as well as foreign
tourists.
The data for this study was gathered through questionnaires that were distributed to a cross section
of tourists in Taman Negara. The method of non-random sampling was used to provide a respectable
number of completed questionnaires in a relatively short fieldwork period. Questionnaires were
distributed to tourists in various manners. Some of the questionnaires were given to tourists directly by
the researchers either at the lobby of their hotels or while they were waiting to check-in into the hotels,
some were distributed in restaurants, while others were given out by hotel staff and guesthouse staff,
usually when guests checked-in or when they were watching televisions and relaxing at night. Some
questionnaires were “dropped off” at the receptionist desk with certain instructions given to the Front
Office Manager of the hotel or guesthouse and were “picked up” at a later date.

4. RESULTS AD DISCUSSIOS

4.1 Response and Profile of Respondents

The sample profile is shown in Table 1. As shown, there were an equal percentage of male and female
tourists visiting Taman Negara. Majority of the tourists were below 41 years of age (79.2%), this showed
that younger people visited Taman Negara. More than three quarter (88%) of the tourists visited Taman
Negara was for the first time.

Table 1: Demographic Characteristics & Travel Behavior

Individual Characteristics %
Gender: Male 44.2
Female 55.8
Age: Below 17 7.5
17-22 10.2
23-30 41.6
31-40 19.9
41-50 13.7
Above 50 7.1
Type of Tourists: Malaysia (Local) 53.5
Others 46.5
Visitor Status: First Time Visitor 87.7
Repeat Visitor 12.3
Type of Visit: Own 51.6
Tour 48.4
Length of Trip/Stay: Less than 3 days 66.2
3 - 6 days 26.5
1 week 1.4
More than 1 week 5.2
Accommodation: Motel (below RM80.00 per night) 43.3
Hotel (above RM80.00 per night) 44.2
Camping 1.3
Others 10.3
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4.2 Satisfaction
Table 2 provides details on the tourists’ satisfaction level towards Taman Negara and compared to their
overall satisfaction. Data shows that the respondents were having a higher overall satisfaction than any of
the individual item used to measure satisfaction level. As to the individual item, tourists were most
satisfied with ‘setting and atmosphere’ to be followed by ‘quality of experience’ and ‘activities’.
However, their satisfaction on the ‘environmental management’ is the least (mean score). This revelation
should be taken seriously by the Park operator and actions must be put in place to better manage the
environment of Taman Negara.
When these items were regressed with overall satisfaction, it was clear that ‘Satisfaction with quality
of experiences’ was the main contributor to the overall satisfaction, to be followed by ‘environmental
quality’ and ‘educational experience’.

Table 2: Level of Satisfaction

Statement Agree Mean Standard

Deviation
Satisfaction with the setting and atmosphere 71% 4.84 .98
Satisfaction with quality of experience 68% 4.78 .96
Satisfaction with activities 57% 4.62 1.03
Satisfaction with educational experience 53% 4.52 1.05
Satisfaction with Environmental quality 59% 4.52 1.10
Satisfaction with facilities and service 53% 4.46 1.01
Satisfaction with environmental management 56% 4.33 1.13
Overall satisfaction 72% 4.85 .88

Seven items were used to measure the satisfaction level of Taman Negara tourists. To collapse these
items, factor analyse was performed and the result is shown in Table 3. The satisfaction items yielded one
clear factor with eigenvalue greater than 1 (eigenvalue 4.07). The principal component analysis
conducted on the seven items revealed a total of 58.08% of the variance. The single factor label of
satisfaction was retained. Besides, one item was used to measure ‘overall satisfaction’. Mean and
standard deviation for overall satisfaction was 4.85 and .88 respectively.

Table 3: Factor Analysis on Satisfaction Level

Factor
Dimension of Satisfaction level 1
Factor 1: Satisfaction

Environmental management .84

Satisfaction with activities .79
Environmental quality .77
Satisfaction with facilities and services .76
Satisfaction with quality of experiences .74
Satisfaction with educational experience .74
The setting & atmosphere .69

Reliability .88
Mean 4.58
Variance explained 58.08%

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4.3 Sustainable Tourism Intention and Practices

Table 4 depicts the extent of behavioural intention and practices on sustainable tourism. As exhibited,
tourists coming to Taman Negara expressed their interest, though not in the strongest manner, to
participate in activities to protect the environment (M=4.97) and to comply with environmental
regulations M=4.77). In the aspect of actual compliance, data shows moderate compliance towards Taman
Negara environmental actions (M=4.51), though they level of participation was lower (‘had participated
in Taman -egara activities to protect environment: M=3.86). Arguably, this outcome could point out to
the limited activities done by the Taman Negara operator in this area.

Table 4: Sustainable Tourism Intention and Practices

Items Agree Mean SD

I would participate in activities to protect environment 76% 4.97 .98
I would comply with all environmental actions 65% 4.77 1.106
I would be more than willing to lead activities to protect 34% 4.35 1.20
environment
My choice of tour operator takes into account environmental 45% 4.27 1.25
issues
My accommodation choice takes into account environmental 47% 4.22 1.37
issues
My choice of food operator/restaurant in Taman Negara 36% 4.08 1.32
takes into account environmental issues
I had participated in Taman Negara activities to protect 38% 3.86 1.59
environment
I had complied fully with all Taman Negara environmental 59% 4.51 4.39
actions
I had taken the initiative to protect the natural environment 45% 4.36 1.48
in T. Negara

Behavioural intention and action are considered as two distinct constructs. As such factor analysis
was conducted to confirm this assumption. The resulting factor analyses are displayed in Table 5 and
Table 6. Behavioural intention yielded one clean factor with an eigenvalue greater than 1. Principal
component analysis conducted on the three items revealed a total of 63.04% of the variance. The single
factor was named accordingly. Similarly, the sustainable practices yielded one clean factor solution with
an eigenvalue greater than 1. Principal component analysis conducted on the four items revealed a total of
70.12% of the variance. The single factor was named accordingly.

Table 5: Factor Analysis on Intention

Factor
Dimensions of Intention 1
Factor 1: Sustainable Tourism Intention

I would comply with all environmental actions .89

I would be more than willing to lead activities to protect environment .86
I would participate in activities to protect environment .61

Reliability .70
Mean 4.69

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Table 6: Factor Analysis on Participation

Dimensions of Participation Factor

1
Factor 1: Sustainable Tourism Practices

My choice of food operator/restaurant in TN takes into account .91

environmental issues
My accommodation in TN takes into account environmental issues .88
My choice of tour operator in TN takes into account environmental issues .83
I had participated in TN activities to protect environment .72

Reliability .85
Mean 4.08

4.4 Relationship between Intention, Practices and Satisfaction

On the basis of regression analysis between these two factors, intention in sustainable activities and
participation sustainable activities were treated as independent variables in the model and were posited to
influence satisfaction. Table 7 shows the regression of interest and participation on satisfaction.
The model was significant with R2 = .18, adjusted R2 = .17 and F value = 24.11. This means that 17%
of the variance in the dependent variable (satisfaction) was explained by the independent variables. The
result was statistically significant at .000 level. It was found that participation in sustainable activities (β
= .42, p< .01) contributed significantly to the model. This result provided evidence those tourists that
participated in sustainable activities has a positive and significant effect on satisfaction.
The data was again run between the two factors interest, participation and overall satisfaction. These
two factors were treated as independent variables in the model and were posited to influence overall
satisfaction. Table 7 shows the outcome of the regression analysis.
The model was significant with R2 = .17, adjusted R2 = .16 and F value = 22.84. This means that 16%
of the variance in the dependent variable (overall satisfaction) was explained by the independent variables.
The result was statistically significant at .00 level. It was found that participation in sustainable activities
(β = .38, p< .01) contributed significantly to the model. This result provided evidence those tourists that
participated in sustainable activities has positive and significant effect on the overall satisfaction.

Table 7: Interest, Participation, Satisfaction and Overall Satisfaction.

Satisfaction Overall Satisfaction

N = 230 N = 230
Std Beta Std Beta
Intention in sustainable activities .01 .08
Participation in sustainable activities .42** .38**
R2 .18 .17
Adjusted R2 .17 .16
F 24.12 22.84
Note: * significant at .05; **significant at .01

5. COCLUSIOS

It is apparent that Taman Negara’s rich ecosystems had considerably contributed to a good measure of
tourists’ satisfaction (71%). The question for Jabatan Penghilitan then is whether 71% is a good enough
and if not, what is the benchmark for satisfaction this department is aiming for? It is also noted that
educational experience is among the least satisfied item in the satisfaction equation. In another word, the
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tourists are expecting to learn more from coming here and this expectation has not being met adequately.
It is therefore timely that Jabatan Penghilitan adds another objective of its department, which concerns
with providing long lasting educational experience to the visiting tourists. It is also worth noting that
satisfaction with the environmental management was also low (56%). In fact, on average (mean score), it
is the least satisfied factor. However, tourists coming to Taman Negara had indicated that they are
substantially more interested in Taman Negara and would encourage their friends to visit. However, their
knowledge of Taman Negara did not improve that much and we are not very sure whether they would be
coming to the park again.

ACKOWLEDGEMET

The team would like to express our gratitude to Wildlife Department of Malaysia, Ministry of Higher
Education, RMI, as well as many individuals in Taman Negara for making this project a success.

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