Azizi Bahauddin

Examining the Influence of International Tourists’ Destination Image and Satisfaction on Their Behavioral Intention in Penang, Malaysia

ABSTRACT This study contributes to tourism and marketing literature by examining the relationships among tourist destination image, satisfaction, and behavioral intention through structural equation modeling. Data were obtained from a survey of 420 foreign tourists visiting Penang, Malaysia, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The findings supported the revisiting behavioral intention model, which indicated that overall satisfaction of a tourist is reflected on the image of the tourist destination. A significant relationship was observed between overall satisfaction and loyalty. Furthermore, destination satisfaction indirectly affected tourist loyalty through overall satisfaction. The tourist destination image increases the perceived satisfaction and fosters the behavioral intentions of tourists. The study developed and empirically tested a conceptual model how overall image and overall satisfaction affect the willingness of tourists to revisit and to recommend a specific destination to other potential visitors. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are discussed in the conclusion.

Broken Windows and Collective Efficacy

The broken windows thesis posits that signs of disorder increase crime and fear, both directly and indirectly. Although considerable theoretical evidence exists to support the idea that disorder is positively related to fear of crime, the empirical literature on examining the indirect effect of the individual’s perception of incivilities on fear of crime is limited, especially in developing countries. This research was conducted to assess the indirect relationship between perceived disorder and fear of crime through collective efficacy. A total of 235 households from Penang, Malaysia, participated in this study. Results reveal that high perception of disorder is negatively associated with collective efficacy. High collective efficacy is associated with low fear of crime. Moreover, a significant and indirect effect of disorder on fear of crime exists through collective efficacy. The results provide empirical support for the broken windows theory in the Malaysian context and suggest that both environmental conditions and interactions of residents play a role in the perceived fear of crime.

The Effects of Cultural Values on Traditional Islamic-Arabic Houses in the Middle East

Culture and design determine the space-influenced values; they specifically outline space variations between values within a culture in relation to design space-influenced values. By the vision of an ideal life, one can shape and mold the vision of space by reflecting cultural forces such as religious beliefs. The purpose of this study will determine cultural values and religious beliefs and, in turn, assess the effects on the formation of houses in the Middle East. For this principle, the elements of traditional Islamic-Arabic homes showed effects by determining certain elements such as the bent entrance, the courtyard, the Haramlek and Salamlik (women’s and men’s quarters), and the Mashrabiya (wooden windows). Qualitative analysis was used as the method to analyze the case studies comparing traditional courtyard homes to today’s housing. The results have shown that today’s housing was unsuccessful when trying to imitate the provision of privacy as it was in the houses during the past.

Territorial features, disorder and fear of crime in residential neighbourhoods in Malaysia: testing for multigroup invariance

This research examined the relationships between territoriality, disorder, crime, perceived risk and fear of crime and determined whether these relationships are constant between neighbourhoods. Questionnaire surveys and on-site observations were conducted on a sample of 320 residents from two neighbourhoods in Malaysia. Tests for invariance were conducted to determine whether coefficients differed across neighbourhoods. Confirmatory factor analytic models of the constructs exhibited adequate fit following multiple criteria within each and across samples. Results from these analyses suggested that the relationships between disorder and perceived risk, victimisation, and fear of crime were significant in both samples. Although high territoriality was associated with low-crime experiences in the low-crime area, no significant relationship was observed in the high-crime area. The findings illustrated the importance of examining territoriality and perceptions of disorder within the neighbourhood contexts.

Influence of scuba divers' specialization on their underwater behavior

Purpose – This study aims to examine the relationship between recreation specialization and divers underwater behavior in Perhentian Island.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected using a pilot survey on 50 divers in Perhentian Island. In‐depth interviews with several dive operators were also conducted to support the findings.Findings – Specialized divers tend to recognize unacceptable behavior rather than less specialized divers. Skilled specialized divers tend not to touch the reefs and not to collect dead pieces of the corals compared to less skilled divers.Practical implications – Specialization and skills of divers can be used as an input to study diver underwater behavior while simultaneously providing insights on coral preservation.Originality/value – It is important to manage diver behavior as there are now several diving operators who offer unlimited diving packages catering to day and night diving from shore. Divers can minimize their impacts by practicing responsible diving behavior....

Factors for consideration to achieve a contextually appropriate physical environment in Malaysian preschools

ABSTRACT With studies on the physical environment of preschools concentrating mostly on settings in the Western world, before establishing minimum standards of quality, developing contextually appropriate physical environment factors become pertinent in Malaysia as a universal and possibly unaffordable high-quality standard may lead to ill-informed policy decision and allocation of funds (UNESCO 2006. EFA Global Monitoring Report 2007. Strong Foundations : Early Childhood Care and Education). As a preliminary study, this conceptual paper sets out to uncover factors for consideration to achieve a contextually appropriate physical environment. In this article, ‘preschool’ denotes establishments for children aged four to six years in diverse educational settings. This article draws from two major fields: preschool education and physical environment of preschools. After secondary analysis of data, preliminary findings critically analysed from reviews of literature through a cross-disciplinary approach indicated that factors for consideration to achieve contextual appropriate physical environment include understanding the curriculum content; learning belief and culture of learning; physical environment factors (including allowable premise for establishing preschools, spatial planning, environmental condition and interior fit out) and statutory requirements (including health and safety factors and existing guidelines). Recommendations for future direction are discussed.

Tourism development progress of two islands of Malaysia: The locals’ perspective towards climate change

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to look at the physical tourism impacts experienced by the communities of Redang Island and Perhentian Island – two tourist islands located close to the coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The physical tourism impacts are examined via environmental and infrastructure related attributes (19 attributes), which are further categorized into sustainability, environment, greenhouse effects, public and tourist facilities maintenance, sewage system management, rural areas and deforestation. All of these indicators indirectly measure the impact of climate change in these island destinations. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a questionnaire survey with an instrument based on prior work by Ap and Cromptom (1998) with regard to air pollution, deforestation and land fertility; Tetlow and Hanusch (2012) in relation to biodiversity; Sunlu (2003) in line with greenhouse effects, water quality, natural landscape and solid waste; and Cessford and Dingwall (1999), corresponding to physical impacts. Findings Results for Perhentian Island indicate serious physical impacts resulting from tourism development, compared with less serious impacts on Redang Island. Both islands were observed to experience tourism development progress that is well-blended with their natural environment, and the level of physical impact dependency on tourism development can be assessed using the environmental and infrastructure variables. Research limitations/implications While the paper reports on findings from both Perhentian and Redang Islands, results from this paper could well represent other communities in many other Malaysian island locations (or perhaps the wider region), facing a similar phenomenon. Originality/value The paper contributes to an understanding of how to investigate each variable independently, as each island is undergoing a different lifecycle phase, regardless of the fact that some islands may be mirroring each other. In addition, the paper envisages the importance of integrating social exchange theory and integrated threat theory, when it comes to evaluating how people judge the consequences of their actions.

Coastal Resort Life Cycle: An Overview of Tioman Island, Malaysia

Abstract The increasing demand of holidaymakers for vacations in Malaysian Island destinations has resulted in a rapid increase in the number of coastal resorts. To explain the growth of coastal resorts, the approach of the life cycle model by Butler [(1980). The concept of a tourist area life cycle of evolution: Implications for management of resources. The Canadian Geographer, 24(1), 5–12] is adopted. This paper describes the life cycle of coastal resorts in Tioman Island by providing the evidences of historical and fieldwork data from the start of the 1890s up to the present. The findings demonstrate that tourism has resulted in substantial changes in the islands coastal resorts. The resorts in the island have passed through subsequently four stages of development as suggested in Butlers model and are currently in the consolidation stage. In each of the stage, the changes in resort morphology and types of tourist visitation are evident. Government and private incentives are the two main factors that stimulate the transformation of the resorts from one stage to the next.

‘Light’ in Malay Songket : Is It Real?

This paper focuses on the in-depth meaning and philosophy of light of the songket motifs together with their traditions and historical associations. The motifs of songket function as vehicles that bring together human minds to be aware of the relationship between the divine and spiritual realms with the physical world. This paper is an exploration of the motifs of songket, which can be seen as the ‘light’ that symbolically represents the Supreme Creator of man, beast and nature. It is equally important to the function of light as a physical entity. The results of this research are mainly qualitative in nature. They are supported by structured interviews, personal observation and visual data to scrutinise the problems and questions raised in this research. The results have shown that the Malay has translated this appreciation of God’s (Allah) beautiful creations into songket through the sense of the weaver, who then transmits these messages to his mind and heart. This paper shows its relationship with the Malay, who created the cultural art and heritage by adding ‘soul’ in their design, taking the aspects of culture, belief and divinity, all of which open our minds to existence and relate it with light, in appreciating humanity and society.

The Influence of Foreign and Local Cultures on Traditional Mosques in Indonesia

This paper aims to investigate the influence of foreign and local culture influence on the architecture and sociocultural activities in the iconic Banten Great Mosque Complex. Indonesia has a strategic location, enabling it to become the ‘melting pot’ of various cultural developments. This paper gives an alternative for the Banten Great Mosque research, as the focus is on three areas inside the complex, the main building of the Great Mosque as a religious space, the Tiyamah buildings where gatherings are held as a social space and the cemetery area with royal graves as an embodiment of the cultural tradition. This study applied the qualitative method with cultural studies and exploratory data approaches. This research is very important in the documentation of Islamic architecture and the cultural identity of Indonesia which will then convey the historical knowledge to other countries, especially those that are connected historically and geographically.