GROUP-DIFFERENTIATED PERCEPTIONS OF SOCIAL IMPACTS RELATED TO TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

Perceived social impacts of tourism development on local residents in peripheral destinations are examined in the case of the resort city of Eilat (Israel) by utilizing a value-stretch methodology. Analysis shows that locals' perceptions are group differentiated. The less locals are affiliated with tourist occupations, the less affluent they are, and the less their sense of peripherality, the more they are affected by the social consequences of tourism development. Policy implications for tourism development in such peripheral settings are suggested.