LET THE VOICES OF RESIDENTS’ BE HEARD. FACTORS DETERMINING SUPPORT FOR TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN WESTERN SERBIA

Local residents are the most important component of a tourist destination, and in order to develop tourism sustainably, it is important to understand their perspectives. The purpose of the research is to find out the way the residents (n=845) perceive towards the development of tourism in Western Serbia. Three factors that represent the viewpoints of residents on the development of tourism have been found by using the main component exploratory factor analysis (EFA). These include perception of tourism benefits, support for tourism development, and attachment to the community. Additionally, the purpose of the research is to find out if residents’ perspectives are different depending on their sociodemographic characteristics. The paper’s findings demonstrate that residents in Western Serbia have a favorable outlook on the development of tourism and that there are some differences in their viewpoints on certain socioeconomic characteristics. © (2024), (Regional Science Association of Subotica (Drustvo za Regionalne Nauke)). All rights reserved.