Keywords
., Willingness to Pay (WTP); Music Festivals, music festivals, socio-economic transformation, sustainable events, carbon footprint, SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption), SDG 13 (Climate Action), sustainable tourism
Willing to pay for the beat of sustainability: Music festivals as drivers of socio-economic transformation supporting sustainable tourism
Abstract
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Research background: Music festivals represent a pivotal arena for socio-economic structural transformation, transitioning from traditional mass tourism toward sustainable cultural economies characterized by diversified local revenue streams, green employment opportunities, and a reduced dependence on extractive sectors. As sustainability emerges as a core expectation among festival attendees worldwide, assessing their willingness to pay (WTP) for environmentally friendly initiatives becomes critical for organizers seeking to contribute to this economic shift. Purpose of the article: This study examines how demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal factors influence WTP among music festival attendees, using a multinomial decision framework. The model captures willingness, refusal, and uncertainty toward carbon-neutral initiatives, providing a more nuanced perspective than traditional binary approaches. By incorporating decision uncertainty, the study extends current knowledge of sustainability-related consumer behavior. It also provides insights that may inform the design of eco-conscious events aimed at supporting local economic resilience in a changing global context. Methods: Survey data from 1,012 festival-goers were analyzed through multinomial logistic regression with a three-option WTP scale (“Yes”, “Maybe”, and “No”), capturing decision-making uncertainty beyond traditional binary approaches while testing predictors of financial contributions to carbon-neutral initiatives. Findings & value added: The analyses revealed significant overall effects of age, festival attendance regularity, perceived importance of sustainability measures, willingness to volunteer for sustainability activities, prior carbon footprint knowledge, and received festival carbon footprint information. In contrast, gender, financial independence, festivals’ awareness promotion, and highest carbon footprint festival aspect identification showed no significance. The three-choice structure uncovers nuanced behavioral patterns, highlighting consumer complexity in sustainability contexts that binary models overlook. Furthermore, this study contributes to the festival sustainability literature by linking individual environmental preferences to broader processes of economic transformation, highlighting the potential of music festivals to support sustainable local development and responsible tourism. By showing that attendees’ environmental engagement can facilitate support for carbon-neutral initiatives, the findings advance understanding of sustainability financing preferences. They also offer valuable insights into festival attendee heterogeneity, enabling organizers to develop more targeted and effective sustainability strategies, while being relevant in the context of UN SDGs 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and 13 (Climate Action).
Research background: Music festivals represent a pivotal arena for socio-economic structural transformation, transitioning from traditional mass tourism toward sustainable cultural economies characterized by diversified local revenue streams, green employment opportunities, and a reduced dependence on extractive sectors. As sustainability emerges as a core expectation among festival attendees worldwide, assessing their willingness to pay (WTP) for environmentally friendly initiatives becomes critical for organizers seeking to contribute to this economic shift. Purpose of the article: This study examines how demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal factors influence WTP among music festival attendees, using a multinomial decision framework. The model captures willingness, refusal, and uncertainty toward carbon-neutral initiatives, providing a more nuanced perspective than traditional binary approaches. By incorporating decision uncertainty, the study extends current knowledge of sustainability-related consumer behavior. It also provides insights that may inform the design of eco-conscious events aimed at supporting local economic resilience in a changing global context. Methods: Survey data from 1,012 festival-goers were analyzed through multinomial logistic regression with a three-option WTP scale (“Yes”, “Maybe”, and “No”), capturing decision-making uncertainty beyond traditional binary approaches while testing predictors of financial contributions to carbon-neutral initiatives. Findings & value added: The analyses revealed significant overall effects of age, festival attendance regularity, perceived importance of sustainability measures, willingness to volunteer for sustainability activities, prior carbon footprint knowledge, and received festival carbon footprint information. In contrast, gender, financial independence, festivals’ awareness promotion, and highest carbon footprint festival aspect identification showed no significance. The three-choice structure uncovers nuanced behavioral patterns, highlighting consumer complexity in sustainability contexts that binary models overlook. Furthermore, this study contributes to the festival sustainability literature by linking individual environmental preferences to broader processes of economic transformation, highlighting the potential of music festivals to support sustainable local development and responsible tourism. By showing that attendees’ environmental engagement can facilitate support for carbon-neutral initiatives, the findings advance understanding of sustainability financing preferences. They also offer valuable insights into festival attendee heterogeneity, enabling organizers to develop more targeted and effective sustainability strategies, while being relevant in the context of UN SDGs 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and 13 (Climate Action).
Información detallada
Materias, derechos, colecciones e identificadores
URI / Handle
https://doi.org/10.24136/eq.4334Rights
Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial-SinObraDerivada España