Analyzing the Implications of Rural Tourism for Roodbar Alamout Region in Qazvin Province of Iran: A Case Study of Ovan Village

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 PhD Student in Agricultural Development, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural Extension, Communication and Rural Development, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran

Abstract

Rural tourism is one of the most important strategies of rural development and at the same time, its environmental, economic, social and cultural sustainability is emphasized. Thus, this study aimed at assessing and analyzing the tourism implications for Ovan village of Roodbar Alamout region in Qazvin province of Iran. It was conducted in a descriptive-survey method. The statistical population was consisted of rural households in Ovan village (N=136); out of them, 100 household members were selected based on Morgan and Krejcie table. The research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire, the reliability of which was acquired by conducting a pilot study and calculation of Cronbach’s alpha coefficient (0.9). Data analysis was done through an exploratory factor analysis technique. The results revealed that the positive implications of tourism might be categorized into the eight factors including improvement of rural housing (11.76 percent), improvement of physical structure of the village (10.51 percent), cultural development (9.51 percent), health development (7.65 percent), economic development (7.20 percent), improvement of rural industries (7.11 percent), increase in awareness (6.55 percent), and employment generation (5.30 percent), which explained 65.62 percent of total variances; in addition, the negative implications of tourism were identified in the five factors including environmental visual pollution (14.52 percent), increase in social abnormalities (13.39 percent), destruction of natural resources (11.48 percent), change in use (10.80 percent), and change in local culture (10.15 percent), which explained 60.36 percent of total variances.

Keywords

Main Subjects


  1. Aazami, M., Jalilian, S. and Hashemi Amin, N. (2015). Analyzing the socio-economic and environmental effects of rural tourism (case study: Navareh village). Tourism Planning and Development, 4(14): 154-174. (Persian)
  2. Abdelali-Martini, M., Amri, A., Ajlouni, M., Assi, R., Sbieh, Y., and Khnifes, A. (2008). Gender dimension in the conservation and sustainable use of agro-biodiversity in West Asia. Journal of Socio-Economics, 37(1): 365-383.
  3. Ajza Shokouhi, M., Bouzarjomehri, K. and Istgaldi, M. (2014). Examine the effects of tourism on the host community's quality of life, case study: Bandar Turkman County. Geographic Space, 4(47): 101-125. (Persian)
  4. Akbarian Ronizi, S.R. and Badri, S.A. (2015). Analysis of beneficiaries perception on effects and consequences of tourism development in rural areas (case study: Lavasanat area). Geography and Development, 13(38): 47-62. (Persian)
  5. Andereck, K.L. and Nyaupane, G.P. (2011). Exploring the nature of tourism and quality of life perceptions among residents. Travel Research, 50(3): 248-260.
  6. Arabiun, A., Sharifzadeh, A. and Abdollahzadeh, G. (2016). Investigating tourism expansion impacts in rural area: case of Ziyarat village in Golestan province. Geography and Environmental Planning, 24(4): 15-32. (Persian)
  7. Bel, F., Lacroix, A., Lyser, S., Rambonilaza, T., and Turpin, N. (2015). Domestic demand for tourism in rural areas: insights from summer stays in three French regions. Tourism Management, 46: 562-570.
  8. Blancas, F.J., González, M., Guerrero, F.M. and Caballero, R. (2011). How to use sustainability indicators for tourism planning: the case of rural tourism in Andalusia (Spain). Science of the Total Environment, 412-413: 28-45.
  9. Cui, X. and Ryan, C. (2011). Perceptions of place, modernity and the impacts of tourism differences among rural and urban residents of Ankang, China: a likelihood ratio analysis. Tourism Management, 32: 604-615.
  10. Dadvarkhani, F. and Mohammadzadeh Larijani, F. (2013). The assessment of environmental subsequences of second homes tourism on rural areas in Babol County. Geography and Regional Development, 11(20): 109-131. (Persian)
  11. Di Falco, S., Bezabih, M. and Yesuf, M. (2010). Seeds for livelihood: crop biodiversity and food production in Ethiopia. Ecological Economics, 69(8): 1695-1702.
  12. Diedrich, A. and García, E. (2009). Local perceptions of tourism as indicators of destination decline. Tourism Management, 30: 512-521.
  13. Ebrahimi Kohboneh, M.S. and Izadi, E. (2014). Analysis of tourism development impacts on the development of rural areas (case study: Kesselian County). Rural Development Strategies, 1(1): 71-83. (Persian)
  14. Fanni, Z., Alizadeh Touli, M. and Zahmatkesh, Z. (2015). The effects of tourism on urban sustainable development in habitants' views, case study: Qeshm Island. Tourism Management Studies, 9(28): 39-72. (Persian)
  15. Fons, M.V.S., Fierro, J.A.M. and Patino, M.G.Y. (2011). Rural tourism: a sustainable alternative. Applied Energy, 88: 551-557.
  16. García, F.A., Vázquez, A.B. and Macías, R.C. (2015). Resident's attitudes towards the impacts of tourism. Tourism Management Perspectives, 13: 33-40.
  17. Ghaderi, Z. and Henderson, J.C. (2012). Sustainable rural tourism in Iran: a perspective from Hawraman village. Tourism Management Perspectives, 2-3: 47-54.
  18. Ghadermarzi, H., Jomeyni, D. and Jamshidi, A. (2016). Study of the impacts of tourism on rural development, case study: Ghoori-Ghaleh village. Space Economy and Rural Development, 4(14): 111-127. (Persian)
  19. Gossling, S. (2001). The consequences of tourism for sustainable water use on a tropical island: Zanzibar, Tanzania. Environmental Management, 61(2): 179-191.
  20. Guo, Z. and Sun, L. (2016). The planning development and management of tourism: the case of Dangjian ancient village in China Tourism Management, 56: 52-62.
  21. Hall, D. (2004). Rural tourism development in Southeastern Europe: transition and the search for sustainability. Tourism Research, 6: 165-176.
  22. Haven‐Tang, C. and Jones, E. (2012). Local leadership for rural tourism development: a case study of Adventa, Monmouthshire, UK. Tourism Management Perspectives, 4: 28-35.
  23. Kadivar, A.A. (2017). A survey on potentials of rural tourism in Razavi Khorasan province of Iran. Village and Development, 20(1): 1-23. (Persian)
  24. Kim, H.G. and Ko, S.T. (2008). Development of social capital in rural tourism: perspectives of community leaders. Tourism and Leisure Research, 20(2): 29-49.
  25. Kim, K., Uysal, M. and Sirgy, M.J. (2012). How does tourism in a community impact the quality of life of community residents? Tourism Management, xxx: 1-14.
  26. Lee, J.W. and Brahmasrene, T. (2013). Investigating the influence of tourism on economic growth and carbon emissions: evidence from panel analysis of the European Union. Tourism Management, 38: 69-76.
  27. Mbaiwa, J.E. and Stronza, A.L. (2010). The effects of tourism development on rural livelihoods in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Sustainable Tourism, 18(5): 635-656.
  28. Mirhosseini, S.A. (2017). Process of identifying and prioritizating the sustainable ecotourism criteria in the desert regions (case study: Yazd province). Geography (Regional Planning), 7(4): 45-58. (Persian)
  29. Park, D.B., Yoon, Y.S. and Lee, M.S. (2007). A multinomial logistic regression model on residents’ social capital in rural tourism villages in Korea. Tourism and Leisure Research, 19(4): 27-46.
  30. Park, K.S. and Kerstetter, D.L. (2002). Social network approach in leisure and tourism research. Tourism and Cultural Research, 4(1): 349-371.
  31. Yaghobi, J. (2012). Survey on some implications of rural tourism for rural regions of Soltaniyeh district, Zanjan province. Village and Development, 15(2): 139-153. (Persian)
  32. Zarafshani, K., Sharafi, L., Gravandi, S. and Ghobadi, P. (2013). The investigation of tourism development impact on promotion of social-economic indices in rural areas, case: Rijab Resort in Kermanshah province. Space Economy and Rural Development, 2(5): 119-134. (Persian)