Tourism impacts and well-being in heritage tourism: the role of discrete emotions and site sustainability characteristics

International visitors' perceptions of tourism impacts at Petra, Jordan, significantly influence their emotions and intentions to recommend the site. Positive experiences, such as happiness, love, and contentment, enhance evaluations of the site's sustainability and overall travel well-being, while negative emotions like anger or unpleasantness diminish these perceptions. The study, using cognitive appraisal theory (CAT) and the PERMA model, analyzed data from 1531 visitors to reveal that better sustainability perceptions and higher well-being directly contribute to positive recommendations for heritage sites. These findings underscore the importance of balancing tourism impacts with sustainability efforts to foster visitor satisfaction and long-term site preservation.

Alrawadieh, Z., Prayag, G., Adie, B. A., & Alrawadieh, Z. (2025). Tourism impacts and well-being in heritage tourism: the role of discrete emotions and site sustainability characteristics. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 20(5), 642–660. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743873x.2025.2502350