Negotiating with Authenticity to Ensure Sustainability of Traditional Cultural Festivals: Residents’ Perspectives about Macao’s Drunken Dragon Festival

Abstract

The present study examines the three perceptual factors (cultural, economic, and social) that affect residents’ attitude towards transformation in the search for sustainability. Macao’s Drunken Dragon Festival, China’s intangible cultural heritage, was used as the case. Self-administered surveys were conducted on 378 resident festival participants in 2015 and 692 residents (both participants and non-participants) in 2017. The results show that regardless of previous experiences of participating in the festival, those who perceive more strongly about its cultural values tend to have positive attitudes towards its transformation, which may involve a loss of objective authenticity. Those who perceive more strongly that the festival is exclusive and does not embrace diverse participants are more likely to support its transformation. However, such a perception does not lead to their belief that diverse groups of people should be incorporated into the festival. Only among the non-participants from the sample collected in 2017, the perception that this festival provides economic benefit is associated with positive attitudes towards transforming and incorporating diverse groups of participants. This study provides insight into understanding the residents’ common and differentiated attitudes with regards to how much transformation is necessary to ensure sustainability of a local traditional cultural festival.