Towards regenerative sustainable tourism: The perception of tourism by French Polynesian residents in search of well-being[Vers un tourisme durable régénératif : La perception du tourisme par les résidents de Polynésie Française en quête de bien-être]

This exploratory research aims to understand how French Polynesia residents perceive tourism in their territory, and what impact it has on their quality of life and well-being. The results show that value theory and the concept of regenerative tourism provide an interesting theoretical framework for understanding residents' attitudes, motivations and expectations. Lexical and thematic analyses show different themes depending on whether the participant is involved in a relationship oriented towards self or others, and whether he or she evokes elements of an intrinsic or extrinsic nature. The lexical fields show an ambiguity of attitudes between the acceptance of tourism as an undeniable source of economic income and the fears engendered by the prospect of mass tourism. On the intrinsic level, these fears revolve around residents' attachment to their territory, their fear of losing their culture, the degradation of their well-being, their strong need for identity and spirituality, and ecological concerns. Extrinsically, they revolve around security issues, the equal sharing of resources for all, the fear of not being consulted on decisions affecting the country, and the need to protect future generations.