Title: The impact of sustainable tourism on quality of life among the marginalised community in Mabul Island, Sabah, Malaysia

Authors: Fatin Nornajla Khairuddin; Sridar Ramachandran; Siow May Ling; Puvaneswaran Kunasekaran; Risidaxshinni Kumarusamy; Illisriyani Ismail

Addresses: Bioresource and Environmental Policy Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia ' School of Business and Economics, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia; Bioresource and Environmental Policy Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia ' Department of Landscape Architecture, Faculty of Design and Architecture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia; Bioresource and Environmental Policy Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia ' School of Hospitality, Tourism & Events, Faculty of Social Science and Leisure Management, Taylor's University, Serdang 47500, Selangor, Malaysia ' School of Graduate Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia ' Bioresource and Environmental Policy Laboratory, Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract: This study intends to reveal the level of quality of life among the local community of Mabul Island in coping with scarce resources due to tourism-related activities. This study examined the impact of sustainable tourism on the quality of life among the marginalised community in Mabul Island using a 2017 population census. Multiple regression analysis of survey data revealed that four factors significantly influence the local community's quality of life, namely social impact, economic impact, gender and tourism occupation. Results show that the social and economic impacts of sustainable tourism have significant positive influences on locals' quality of life, while environmental impacts do not affect the quality of life. Therefore, this study confirms the theory of social exchange demonstrating that the local community's involvement in the tourism industry results in more benefits than costs. Besides that, the study finds that economic impacts increase the quality of life of the local community; thus, tourism planners should provide entrepreneurial avenues to improve locals' business skills and change their quality of life for the better.

Keywords: COVID-19; online businesses resilience; business model innovation; business model development.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2024.137339

European Journal of International Management, 2024 Vol.22 No.4, pp.647 - 672

Received: 18 Dec 2019
Accepted: 22 Aug 2020
Published online: 13 Mar 2024 *

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