Ricerc@Sapienza

Young people’s beliefs concerning ecotourism were investigated in a qualitative study based on the focus group technique. Findings confirmed results of previous research work conducted with both adults and the young populations that had recorded a general lack of knowledge of the nature, aims and characteristics of ecotourism, as well as a lack of awareness of some of its potentialities like, for example, the benefits it could provide to local inhabitants.

This paper summarizes and discusses a series of studies conducted in Italy over the last 10 years on the theme of sustainable urban mobility. The studies applied different theoretical models (attitude theory, social representation theory and the communication research approach) and methodological approaches (quantitative and qualitative) to investigate citizens’ orientations (in terms of values, attitudes, beliefs and representations) toward the adoption of more sustainable transportation styles in an urban context.