STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF THE TRI HITA KARANA CONCEPT IN TOURISM EDUCATION

Tripadvisor awarded Bali as top four most popular destinations for tourists around the globe for three consecutive years around 2021-2023. Those recognitions believed as the accumulation of the Tri Hita Karana concept which consists of Parahyangan, Pawongan and Palemahan has been adopted in the tourism industry in Bali. The Cultural Tourism students of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja actually get two kinds of subjects Tri Hita Karana for Tourism and Sustainability Tourism subjects which are almost similar according to the contents. Then, it is important to know the students’ perceptions regarding the concept of Tri Hita Karana in their study as it is important to implement in their workplace later. The research method used in this study was a mixed method with a sequential explanatory model. The sample of the study was 54 students over 120 students of cultural tourism students in the fifth and sixth semester of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja. The result of the study indicated that the mean score was 4.47 which means that the Cultural Tourism Students of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja showed a positive attitude toward Tri Hita


I. Introduction
Tripadvisor awarded Bali as top four most popular destinations for tourists around the globe for three consecutive years around 2021-2023 (Widyanti, 2021;Simangunsong & Tashandra, 2022;Hendriyani, 2023).The beauty of Bali's nature, the uniqueness of Balinese art, culture, and tradition as well as Hindu religious ceremonies in Bali give a special touch to tourists who invite them to revisit Bali.The tourism industry in Bali conducts sustainable tourism as the foundation, which is related to the efforts of the Balinese people to develop the four focus pillars, including sustainable management (tourism business), longterm sustainable economy (socioeconomic), cultural sustainability which must always be developed and maintained, as well as environmental aspects (environmental sustainability).It is in line with the Balinese people's way of life which is known as Tri Hita Karana (THK) concept.
The Tri Hita Karana concept which consists of Parahyangan (relationship between human and God), Pawongan (relationship among human), and Palemahan (relationship between human and environment) is adopted by Hindu people in Bali in their daily life (Atmadja, 2019).The concept is implemented in the tourism management in Bali to make sure that all the stakeholders which covers government, management, tourists, community, and academic community responsible for tourism sustainability in Bali.As it is necessary to introduce the concept in tourism higher education, the implementation is through a special subject Tri Hita Karana which is taught to cultural tourism students in the third semester of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja.The students actually get two kinds of subjects Tri Hita Karana for Tourism and Sustainability Tourism which are almost similar according to the contents.Then, it is important to know the students' perceptions regarding the concept of Tri Hita Karana in their study as it is important to implement in their workplace later.
Perception is a process of understanding or giving meaning to information due to a stimulus.The stimulus is obtained through the process of sensing the object, event, and relationship between symptoms that are processed by the mind (Sumanto, 2014).Meanwhile, according to Simamora (2002) perception can be defined as a process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting stimuli into a meaningful and comprehensive picture of the world.Perception according to Devito (2011) perception is a process by which we become aware of the many stimuli that influence our senses.
Perception influences what stimuli or messages we absorb and what meaning we assign to them when they reach consciousness.
Basically, there are two types of perception, firstly positive perception, where the individual gives a positive response followed by good acceptance of the object or event, secondly, negative perception, where the individual will give a negative response and is followed by rejection of the object or event (Mahmud,  Irwanto (1990) adds that an individual who gives a positive perception of a stimulus object means that the individual likes, follows, and tries to follow up or act actively towards the stimulus.Individuals who have a negative perception of a stimulus object will reject it, tend to challenge it, and the individual will be passive in responding to the stimulus object.From the explanation above, it can be concluded that positive perception is a positive response given by an individual to the object being perceived which is followed by action in the form of acceptance of the object, liking the object, a tendency to follow and the individual is active in responding to the object being perceived.Negative perception is a negative response to a perceived object which is followed by rejection, contradiction, and individual passivity.Positive perceptions and negative perceptions will always influence a person's behavior.
The stages of perception include the levels of an organism's observable physical responses to stimuli.Perception is part of the overall process that produces a response after a stimulus is applied.The stages of perception include (Sobur, 2003): (1) Process of Receiving Stimuli (Sensing), namely the first process in perception is receiving stimuli or data from various sources.Most data is received through the five senses; (2) Organizing Process, is the process of processing stimuli that are received and then represented in a certain form.There are three dimensions in organizing stimuli, including a. Grouping.b.Embossed shapes and backgrounds.c.Stability of perception; (3) Interpretation Process After the stimulus is received and organized, the recipient then interprets the data in various ways.The perception process occurs if the data has been interpreted.
People' perceptions are influence by their background (Hamilton & Giffrod, 1976).There are two basic influences from Cultural Effects considering that the cultural context in question is related to a person's place of origin or residence.The culture brought from a person's place of origin and residence will form a different way for each person to "see the world".Apart from that, Gifford said that educational factors can also influence a person's perception of the environment in a cultural context.Physical Effects related to the natural conditions of an environment will influence the perception of someone who observes and knows that environment.An environment with its attributes and forming elements that produce a certain character or typicality will create an identity for that environment.
This research is urgent to be conducted as both cultural and physical effects influence the perception of Balinese people especially the thirdsemester students of Cultural Tourism Study Program of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja to the Tri Hita Karana concept.As well as both effects, educational effects also have a portion in influencing the students to have a perception regarding the Tri Hita Karana concept and also its implementation in tourism industry in Bali.

II. Method
The research method used in this study was a mixed method with a sequential explanatory model.The Mixed Method research design is a research design that uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to collect valid data on the perception of the students regarding the concept of Tri Hita Karana.Quantitative data were collected through a survey related to the perception of the cultural tourism students in the fifth and sixth semesters of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja.While qualitative data were collected through interviews and observation to confirm the result of the survey.The sample of the study was 43 students over 75 students as the population with Slovin formulation with e-ISSN: 2745-7915 p-ISSN: 2745-7923 [230] e= 0,1.The questionnaires were arranged through 9 questions regarding the stages of perception theory from Sobur (2003), including receiving stimuli (sensing) process, organizing process, and interpretation process.The data were analyzed through descriptive statistics and interactive data analysis.

III. Finding and Discussion
The quantitative data which is presented in a descriptive statistic, will be displayed in this section.

Receiving Stimuli (Sensing) Process
According to the results of the questionnaires related to the receiving stimuli (sensing) process, the result of the students' feelings, interests, and positive stimuli can be seen below.The result of the first question which is related to the students' feeling to THK in Tourism showed that more than half of students around 53.5% decided that they absolutely agreed to be happy to learn THK in their third semester.Around 46.5% of students agree to feel happy to learn THK in tourism subject.No students answered that they doubted or disagreed regarding their feelings about getting THK course.The qualitative data through interviews proved that most students said that they agree that THK course is very prominent for tourism students as they will work in the hospitality industry which selling product and service then they need to have good relationship between God, human and nature.The second question is regarding the students' interest in the THK concept in Tourism.In this category, the students' answers mostly on the agree (53.5%) and strongly agree (46.5%).This data represent that students' agreement to know more about the implementation of the Hindu's concept on the tourism business as the interview results indicated that most students believed that the THK concept will bring harmony regarding those three relationships and it is necessary to be the focus of tourism stakeholders for not always prioritize monetary benefits but must pay attention to the balance between THK and tourism development.The result of the questionnaire related to positive stimuli given to the students by understanding the THK concept in tourism covers 58.1% strongly agree, 39.5% agree and 2.4% doubt.In the Students' Perception Of The Tri Hita…(Ni Putu Dian Utami Dewi;dkk, Hal.227-236) [231] interview, they said that they have started to become a person who respect others more and they have some new information regarding some rules in tourism related to THK concept which makes Bali different from the other tourism destination.The next question is on the students' motivation to learn THK in tourism.As they said it is important to be implemented because of its many advantages on the tourism in Bali then most of the students said that they have high motivation to learn more about the concept as it can be seen in the diagram that 55.8 % students said strongly agree and 44.2% students said agree.The result indicated around 48.8% of students strongly agree and 46.5% agree that THK is significant to exist in all tourism subject, only 4.7% of students doubt and disagree.The result of interviews refer to the importance of THK concept in tourism industry then it will be important for the tourism students to learn THK concept in all the subject and the students said that it is also important for all the tourism students in another university learn THK in their courses.[232] benefits that they can take later when they work in the hospitality industry by understanding the THK concept.The benefits including they understand how to have good relationship to the God, to the human (their leader, senior, staff and guest) and also the nature, they know regarding the policy of Bali provincial government related on THK concept in tourism and they know what it is necessary to be done as Balinese people who take the advantages of the tourism development in Bali.More than half of students 62,8% strongly agree that it is significant for the government of Bali to put the THK concept as the basic teaching for tourism regulation as according to the students this is a proper teaching that manages all the components of tourism.The percentage of the students who choose agree is around 37.2% which indicates that all the students agree that THK concept is a good point to be considered as a prominent concept as it is in line with some tourism theories, such as sustainable tourism, CBT (Community Based Tourism) and 4A theory.The last question regarding the importance of THK course for tourism students.Most of the students 60.5% said that they absolutely agree to have THK subject as it can be the rule for Balinese people to maintain harmony in all elements and it is in accordance with the philosophy of Balinese people life.The descriptive statistic in the table above indicates that the mean score is 4.47.As the mean of data was less than 4.5 and more than 3.5.Therefore, it can be said that the perception of students of Cultural Tourism Study Program in STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja toward the Tri Hita Karana concept on the Tourism Education were positive.The THK course is very important to give to students because it is an important thing to implement in the world of tourism so that it remains sustainable in all fields, both in terms of scale, the environment and fellow humans.In my opinion, having the Tri Hita Karana course will Students' Perception Of The Tri Hita…(Ni Putu Dian Utami Dewi;dkk, Hal.227-236) [233] certainly provide great benefits, especially when it is related to tourism on the island of Bali.The existence of Tri Hita Karana is able to provide such value and benefits because it will provide an understanding of how later we as students who will enter the world of tourism will always be connected to God, humans and the surrounding environment.My opinion really agrees because in the world the tourism industry is closely related to Tri Hita Karana, where from the start we are grateful for all the needs on earth to Ida Sang Hyang Widhi, learning to care for and look after plants and respecting fellow humans in tourism organizations.The Tri Hita Karana Tourism course teaches us the THK concept regarding tourism, especially in Bali.In Bali itself, the state of tourism, especially those related to existing culture and customs, cannot be separated from the THK concept.It is very necessary to apply it because the teachings of Tri Hita Karana, especially in tourism education, are the philosophy of life of the Balinese people which contains three elements that build balance and harmony in the relationship between humans and God, humans and humans, and humans and their environment which is a source of prosperity, peace and happiness for the human life 2. Explain the benefits I can understand the basis for building good tourism, so one of the important points to pay you felt after taking the Tri Hita Karana Tourism course?attention to is the implementation of the Tri Hita Karana teachings.The benefit is that I understand that Hindu religious teachings are still relevant in relation to tourism and are the foundation for tourism, especially in Bali, so that all elements in it can form harmony.The benefit that I feel is that I have become a person who respects others more I came to understand how we can make efforts to develop Tri Hita Karana-based tourism The benefit that I felt was that I knew that when building a hotel in Bali it must be based on the Tri Hita Karana concept because the height of the hotel cannot exceed the coconut tree.

In your opinion, should the
Tri Hita Karana concept be the basis of tourism in Bali?If Yes, explain why! Yes, It's a must.Because this concept is very good, namely to maintain harmony in all elements, both with God, the environment and humans.This concept regulates how we as tourism actors continue to pay attention to these indicators as a way to continue running tourism but remain sustainable Yes, because the Tri Hita Karana concept can be the basis for implementing good and quality tourism, especially in Bali because it is in accordance with the philosophy of life of the Balinese people themselves.Yes, because the concept of Tri Hita Karana is very relevant to the tourism situation in Bali, where the Balinese people are famous for their hospitality in the pawongan, namely caring for each other and respecting e-ISSN: 2745-7915 p-ISSN: 2745-7923 [234] fellow humans.Apart from that, the existence of palemahan, namely maintaining a harmonious relationship with nature and the environment, is very suitable for the basis of tourism so as not to abuse it and still pay attention to the sustainability of nature and the environment and minimize waste that can pollute the environment.And finally there is parahyangan, namely maintaining a harmonious relationship with God or ida sanghyang widi wasa which is also important to apply in tourism, especially in Bali, because we believe that wherever we are, we must respect God by praying in the sanggah made in the tourism environment.Yes, it needs to be a basis so that tourism stakeholders do not always prioritize monetary benefits pay attention to the balance between Tri Hita Karana and tourism development With THK we are able to maintain good relationships with other people, nature and God, so by implementing THK we will be able to create spiritual tourism, maintain natural beauty in a sustainable manner and provide a pleasant experience for tourists from polite and satisfying service.environmentally friendly tourist attractions How to apply Tri Hita Karana in the tourism industry in Bali, namely: 1. Parahyangan = we as Hindus remember to pray wherever and wherever we are so that life is comfortable and harmonious 2. Pawongan = how to implement it by respecting fellow human beings and participating in working together to ensure peace and harmony 3. Pabelasan = in accordance with the meaning, namely maintaining a relationship with nature and the environment, so its application can start from planting trees and caring for them so that tourism seems more beautiful and harmonious By making shrines in the hotel area to build balance between humans and God, respecting fellow co-workers to build balance between humans and humans, then planting trees in the hotel environment, not throwing hotel waste carelessly, this is aimed at building a balance between humans and the environment.By implementing Tri Hita Karana in the tourism industry, such as building tourism based on the Tri Hita Karana concept and doing all things related to Tri Hita Karana which can build tourism and keep tourism in Bali safe and not polluted by foreign culture.There must be cooperation with the relevant government, if we move alone it will not affect Bali itself Students' Perception Of The Tri Hita…(Ni Putu Dian Utami Dewi;dkk, Hal.227-236) [235] Tri Hita Karana is used as a reference for tourism to develop by establishing relationships with tourists, not destroying nature because it supports tourism and always remembering God even though the cultures that come are increasingly different.By applying every aspect, namely the relationship with God, always pray before starting work so that the work can be completed smoothly and without obstacles.Then the relationship with humans, namely being able to understand and understand both colleagues and tourists so that a harmonious relationship will be achieved, then the relationship with nature, so always keep the environment clean so that those of us who work feel comfortable, and tourists too. 5.In your opinion, how does the Tri Hita Karana concept exist in the world of tourism?
In fact, the concept of Tri Hita Karana has long been applied by the world of tourism, especially on the island of Bali.This can be seen from the construction of holy places in the tourism destination area or hotels, how to maintain good service to tourists, and keep the tourism environment clean.So in my opinion the concept of Tri Hita Karana is already quite existing in tourism circles on the island of Bali.Most of its existence has been implemented because it is a regulation from the government as well In my opinion, the existence of the THK concept in the world of tourism has not been realized evenly, because if a DTW or company is able to implement this concept then it will definitely be sustainable... this is proven that not all DTWs or companies have a good image, in fact there are several DTWs or companies that have bad relationships between each other and even with nature (dirty environment).With the Tri Hita Karana concept in the world of tourism, it is able to provide a concept for developing a building in accordance with the philosophy of Hinduism in Bali Since the emergence of Tri Hita Karana in the tourism sector in Bali, people who work in the industrial sector have felt a significant change so that there is a focus on Tri Hita Karana because it can make the world of tourism in the future a harmonious, conceptual and prosperous field.THK is very effective when applied, but currently many people ignore THK and only focus on profits without looking at the damage it causes.its existence has not been realized optimally, because there are still many tourism actors, both tourists who do not care about environmental cleanliness, tourists who do not understand the sacred area The existence of Tri Hita Karana is still not widely implemented by tourism stakeholders so that many negative impacts arise from tourism management.

IV. Conclusion
The mean score was 4.47 which means that the Cultural Tourism Students of STAHN Mpu Kuturan Singaraja showed a positive attitude toward Tri Hita Karana concept in Tourism

Figure 2 .
Figure 2. Students' Interest Regarding THK Concept in Tourism

Figure 3 .
Figure 3. Students' Positive Stimuli Regarding THK in Tourism

Figure 4 .
Figure 4. Students' motivation to learn THK in Tourism

Figure 5 .
Figure 5.The Importance of THK in all the Tourism Subjects

Figure 6 .
Figure 6.The students' activeness in THK in Tourism Subjects

Figure 8 .
Figure 8.The Importance of THK in Tourism as the Basic of Tourism in Bali.

Figure 9 .
Figure 9.The Importance of THK in Tourism Subjects for Tourism StudentsThe last question regarding the importance of THK course for tourism students.Most of the students 60.5% said that they absolutely agree to have THK subject as it can be the rule for Balinese people to maintain harmony in all elements and it is in accordance with the philosophy of Balinese people life.