Investigation of tourist guides' attitudes towards intangible cultural heritage

In this study, it was aimed to examine the attitudes of tourist guides towards intangible cultural heritage. Within the scope of the research, a survey type research model, which is one of the descriptive study designs, was used. A total of 272 tourist guides, 94 women and 178 men, registered in the Nevşehir guides chamber, participated in the research. In the data collection process of the research, "Personal Information Form" and "Intangible Cultural Heritage Attitude Scale" were used. During the data analysis process, Independent Samples T Test and One Way ANOVA analysis were used in the SPSS 22.0 program. In the research, it was determined that the tourist guides' total attitude levels regarding intangible cultural heritage, traditional arts, oral traditions, knowledge and practices on nature and the universe were at a medium level, while their attitude levels regarding social life and cultural awareness were above the medium level. It was determined that tourist guides' attitudes towards intangible cultural heritage showed a significant difference according to their education level, work cards and education on intangible cultural heritage, (p<0.05). On the other hand, it was determined that the attitudes of tourist guides towards intangible cultural heritage did not differ significantly according to their gender, age group, marital status, the duration of professional experience and the way they practice their profession (p>0.05). As a result, it can be said that tourist guides' attitudes towards intangible cultural heritage are positive, while some demographic variables affect the level of attitude towards intangible cultural heritage. Key words: Tourism, tourist guidance, intangible cultural heritage