List of articles (by subject)
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Open Access Article
1 - Investigating the Effect of Smart Tourism Technologies’ Select Factors on the Satisfaction of Using Technology in Travel: A Case Study of Yazd Visitors
Hashem Reisi amirreza konjkav monfared elahe hosseiniEmerged out of recent advances and the development of information technology, smart tourism provides modern modes of communication, novel ways of collecting information, and new opportunities for value creation and management. Therefore, this study sought to investigate MoreEmerged out of recent advances and the development of information technology, smart tourism provides modern modes of communication, novel ways of collecting information, and new opportunities for value creation and management. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the influence of the technologies used in smart tourism on tourists’ satisfaction with using technology in their travels. The study's statistical population comprised domestic tourists who visited Yazd city in Iran, out of whom 240 individuals were selected via convenient sampling. The required data were collected by administering the 16-item questionnaire proposed by Yoo et al. (2017) and Huang et al. (2017). Moreover, the questionnaire’s technical characteristics were examined in terms of validity (structure and content) and reliability (Cronbach's alpha) to secure the accuracy of the research results. The research hypotheses were also tested based on the partial least squares method using the structural equation modeling and Smart PLS 3 software. The study’s results indicated that all three hypotheses were confirmed, as their t-statistic value was over 1.96. Furthermore, it was found that the highest impact factor belonged to informing aspect of smart tourism technologies, suggesting that offering information, interaction, and accessibility had a significant positive effect on the satisfaction of using technology in travel. It can therefore be argued that satisfaction with the use of technology in travel generates profits for tourism companies, leading to the loyalty of tourists to a particular destination. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
2 - Ethnographic Study of the Tourists' Motivation for Recreational Trip to Mazandaran Province Through the Lens of Rite of Passage Theory
Zohreh Korani Fatemeh SamConsidering the relationship between tourists' motivations and the type of their trip, a clear and logical perception of the process could be of great significance. Therefore, this study sought to analyze the tourists’ motivations for traveling to the coastal cities of MoreConsidering the relationship between tourists' motivations and the type of their trip, a clear and logical perception of the process could be of great significance. Therefore, this study sought to analyze the tourists’ motivations for traveling to the coastal cities of Mazandaran province, taking a distinct anthropological perspective by highlighting the concepts of leisure trips. As ethnography is the main method used by anthropologists to discover the elements existing in a field, this study used a qualitative method with an emphasis on ethnography. Primary data were collected through participant observation and semi-structured in-depth interviews. To this end, 16 tourists who had visited the three coastal cities of Mahmoud Abad, Fereydoonknar, and Babolsar were selected via purposive sampling. The collected data were then analyzed using a three-stage coding system. In this regard, first, three categories, including "a place with a different structure", "in search of novel experiences", and "suspension" were identified. Finally, after performing the selective coding, the core category of "rites of passage" was extracted. According to the study’s results, it appears that the tourists who travel to the cities mentioned above for recreational purposes experience a mixed feeling of suspension and freedom from the requirements and responsibilities of daily life during the trip, which could be considered similar to the second phase of the theory of rites of passage. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
3 - Metatheorizing Regional Tourism: A Meta-analysis Report
Abbasgholi Sangi NoorpourConsidering the growing number of research articles published on regional planning and tourism worldwide, and the fact that it appears impossible for the researchers to review all of them in detail, it is necessary to analyze the studies conducted in this field whatsoev MoreConsidering the growing number of research articles published on regional planning and tourism worldwide, and the fact that it appears impossible for the researchers to review all of them in detail, it is necessary to analyze the studies conducted in this field whatsoever. Moreover, as meta-analysis has recently been welcomed by Iranian researchers, it seems that in a near future, a considerable number of studies on urban and regional planning would apply meta-analysis as their research method. Therefore, this study sought to examine, based on the PRISMA statement, the reports of meta-analysis studies on regional planning published in both Iranian and Non-Iranian journals. To this end, all Iranian and Non-Iranian journals (in Persian and English) in the field of regional planning indexed during the last decade with the subject of regional tourism by such databases as Magiran, SID (Scientific Information Database, affiliated with the Academic Center for Education Culture and Research), Google Scholar, and IranDoc (Iranian Research Institute for Information Science and Technology) were examined, using meta-analysis and tourism as keywords for searching through the aforementioned databases, resulting in the identification of 38 relevant articles. Then, 13 articles were selected based on predetermined criteria, whose data were analyzed based on the PRISMA statement using descriptive statistics. The study’s findings indicated the examined meta-analysis articles were acceptably compatible with the criteria set by the PRISMA statement in terms of overall quality. Moreover, it was found that 38% percent of the articles lacked expected methodological quality. Also, the quality of the meta-analysis studies reported in the field of regional tourism was found to be moderate. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
4 - Investigating the Effect of Organizational Citizenship Behavior on Service Quality, and Customers' Satisfaction and Loyalty in the Hotel Industry: A Case Study of Mazandaran Province’s Parsian International Hotels
jafar bahari mehdi karoubi Shahla BahariThis study sought to investigate the effect of organizational citizenship behavior on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of customers in the hotel industry, selecting the Parsian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, including the Parsian MoreThis study sought to investigate the effect of organizational citizenship behavior on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of customers in the hotel industry, selecting the Parsian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, including the Parsian Azadi Hotel in Ramsar, Iran (four-star) and the Parsian Azadi Khazar Hotel in Namakabroud, Chaloos, Iran (five-star) as the cases of the study, which was conducted in summer 2017. The study is regarded as applied in terms of purpose, descriptive in terms of research method, and survey in terms of data collection method, using Structural Equation Modeling and the Smart PKS Software to analyze the collected data. The study’s statistical population comprised all employees and visitors of Persian International Hotels in Mazandaran province, out of which the sample size was selected via random sampling and the Cochran. Moreover, a standard questionnaire was administered to collect the required data, whose reliability was measured using Cronbach's alpha. The study’s results indicated that organizational citizenship behavior had a significant positive influence on service quality offered to and the satisfaction and loyalty of the customers. It was also found that the customers’ satisfaction had a significant positive effect on their loyalty and that the customers’ satisfaction had the greatest path coefficient value, exerting the highest influence on the customers’ loyalty compared to other variables. Finally, necessary recommendations were offered based on the results of the data analysis. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
5 - Investigating the Scenarios of non-Muslim non-Iranian Tourists of Mashhad Within 2025 Perspective
Arash Ghahreman Ahmad roumiani Sareh Nematian zahra bostanThe uncertainty caused by environmental complexities has made it difficult to forecast the future of Tourism in Mashhad in terms of non-Muslim tourists visiting the city, about whom no sufficient information exists. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the trend MoreThe uncertainty caused by environmental complexities has made it difficult to forecast the future of Tourism in Mashhad in terms of non-Muslim tourists visiting the city, about whom no sufficient information exists. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the trend of variations in the visits made to Mashhad by non-Muslim tourists using the scenario writing method. To this end, this applied study used the analytical-qualitative approach, collecting the required data through detailed in-person interviews. In this regard, twenty-seven interviews were made in three phases with tourism experts in such fields as sociology, economics, planning, and specialized tourism services. In the first phase, the factors involved in attracting non-Muslim tourists to Mashhad were identified according to the views offered by the experts in interviews using the Delphi technique. In the second phase, the critical driving forces were identified based on two criteria of effectiveness and uncertainty. Finally, the optimistic and pessimistic scenarios concerning the future of non-Muslim tourism in Mashhad were described. The study’s findings revealed that smartizing tourism, making connections between tourism in Mashhad and its neighboring cities, increasing the number of media advertisements, improving the hospitality culture, and promoting a sense of security in the visiting tourists were the most important driving forces at the local level. Therefore, the number of Mashhad’s non-muslim tourists could be increased within the study period by improving IT infrastructure (including electronic trading, and electronic banking), introducing neighboring cities and villages of Mashhad and their tourist attractions, offering instructions regarding hospitality (especially for taxi drivers, business and shop owners), creating tourism police, and providing security in high-trafficking urban places. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
6 - Developing a Green Supply Chain Model for Improving the Sustainable Development of the Environment Using a Grounded-Theory-based Qualitative Approach
Zahra Delshad Mozhdeh Rabbani Hasan Dehghan DehnaviAs one of the top ten industries in the world, tourism plays an important role in the economic cycle, contributing significantly to revenue generation and currency earning. Therefore, this study sought to identify and develop a conceptual model for managing the green su MoreAs one of the top ten industries in the world, tourism plays an important role in the economic cycle, contributing significantly to revenue generation and currency earning. Therefore, this study sought to identify and develop a conceptual model for managing the green supply chain in the tourism industry of Fars province using the grounded theory-based qualitative approach. To this end, the required data were collected through document analysis and interviews with 20 experts who were selected via the snowball sampling method. Moreover, the validity of the study was examined and confirmed by the interviewees and the expert professors. Finally, the collected data were coded through the open coding, axial coding, and selective coding methods and analyzed via the continuous comparison method, based on which the qualitative model of the study was designed. Accordingly, 120 open codes were extracted from the transcribed version of the interviews, which were then organized in terms of 21 axial codes via MAXQDA software, including causal conditions (green processes, customers and other external institutions, green innovation), contextual conditions (driving forces involved in green materials supply, implementation of the waste management system, financial thoughts, and the organization’s costs), intervening conditions (environmental management approaches, green supply chain risks, green suppliers' capabilities, human resources management), phenomenon-based conditions (the improvement of environmental performance, economic factors, operational performance), strategies (management, technology, economics, policy-making), outcomes (green supply chain enablers, credit enhancement, institutionalization of technology equipment and technical knowledge, energy management and optimization). Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
7 - "Investigating Effective factors on Students’ eco-friendly behavior: A case study of University of Tehran, and Science and Culture University "
Bahram Nekouie Sadry Samaneh Tavasoli Ahmad Pourahmad FATEMEH FEHRESTThis study sought to identify the factors involved in the eco-friendly behavior of students, evaluating the extent they were effective in that regard. The population of this survey study comprised of 320 students of University of Tehran and Science and Culture Universit MoreThis study sought to identify the factors involved in the eco-friendly behavior of students, evaluating the extent they were effective in that regard. The population of this survey study comprised of 320 students of University of Tehran and Science and Culture University who were equally selected through systematic random sampling and classified into two groups of eco-tourism related students and non-ecotourism ones. Having administered a standard relevant questionnaire, we analyzed the data collected from the survey through which the questionnaires were filled, in each individual university, by the two groups of students, half of whom belonged to the first group and the others belonged to the second. The findings of the study indicated significant differences between the ecotourism behavior of male and female students and those of the ecotourism and non-ecotourism students. A significant positive relationship was also found between eco-friendly behavior and environmental awareness, attitude, and active membership in environment NGOs. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
8 - Assessing the Elasticity of Health Tourism Demand from Middle Eastern Countries
hamid asayesh mahdi kamali hadi rahmani fazliComprising medical and health (prevention) types of tourism, health tourism is of great importance for Iran, considering the country’s potential medical capabilities (the presence of qualified practicing physicians and extensive medical and treatment facilities) and app MoreComprising medical and health (prevention) types of tourism, health tourism is of great importance for Iran, considering the country’s potential medical capabilities (the presence of qualified practicing physicians and extensive medical and treatment facilities) and appropriate natural health resources (such as hot springs, salt domes, salt lakes, and Mud therapy facilities). Moreover, the capacity of health tourism in terms of foreign exchange earnings is more than three times than that of ordinary international tourism. However, despite its great capacities, Iran has a modest share of the health tourism market, the increase in which requires the assessment of the elasticity of health tourism demand from the Middle East in terms of the relevant effective factors. Therefore, this study sought to find answers to the following basic questions: 1- What are the factors affecting the demand for health tourism? 2- What is the elasticity of the demand for health tourism in terms of such factors? To this end, this study assessed the demand for health tourism using the Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS) and the simultaneous equation Model. Moreover, a questionnaire was administered to 182 tourists coming from the Persian Gulf countries to express their opinion regarding health tourism and estimate the elasticity of health tourism demands in terms of relevant effective factors. The results of the AIDS estimations revealed that the price elasticity of health tourism demand was greater than one, while the price elasticity of other products and accommodation services was less than one. Moreover, it was found that the elasticity of health tourists' demand from Iran belonged to significant variables such as the tourist’s income level, visa validity, expenses, exchange rate variations, and the inflation rate. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
9 - Developing a Cultural-Indices-based Model of Health Tourism in Iran
samaneh barkhordariThe globalization of health means patients travel to other countries to receive medical treatment. Nowadays, healthcare is a global phenomenon. On the other hand, the establishment of multi-national hospitals, the competitive costs of healthcare worldwide, the internati MoreThe globalization of health means patients travel to other countries to receive medical treatment. Nowadays, healthcare is a global phenomenon. On the other hand, the establishment of multi-national hospitals, the competitive costs of healthcare worldwide, the internationalization of standards, and the fact that different countries are getting closer to each other in terms of specialized technologies are some indications of the globalization of healthcare. This applied exploratory study sought to develop a model for health tourism based on cultural indices in Iran using a mixed method. Accordingly, the required data were collected via semi-structured interviews and questionnaires at qualitative and quantitative phases, respectively. The statistical population of the study comprised of senior officials involved in health tourism policy making, professionals of Iran’s health tourism industry, and professors and faculty members in management who specialized in tourism and cultural studies, out of whom 100 participants were selected using Cochran’s formula. Finally, after multiple reviewing of the codes and combining them in several phases, some sixty-six sub-codes were identified, out of which eleven key factors were identified to be included in the intended cultural-indices-based model for health tourism in Iran. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
10 - Investigating the Social, Cultural, and Environmental Consequences of Tourism Development from the Host Community Perspective: A Case Study of Darband and Darakeh Neighborhoods of Tehran, Iran
Aliasghar Saeidi Zahra Farzizade Soheila TasaThis study sought to investigate the social, cultural, and environmental consequences of tourism development from the perspective of the host community in the Darband and Darake neighborhoods of Tehran using a qualitative approach. To this end, some eighteen people, inc MoreThis study sought to investigate the social, cultural, and environmental consequences of tourism development from the perspective of the host community in the Darband and Darake neighborhoods of Tehran using a qualitative approach. To this end, some eighteen people, including the owners of catering units, local officials, and residents of the neighborhoods were selected as the sample size via purposive sampling. The required data were collected through semi-structured interviews, participatory and non-participatory observation, which were then analyzed using content analysis. Finally, the analyzed data were categorized into 167 concepts, 17 subcategories, and four main categories. The findings of the study indicated that tourism development had brought about similar consequences for the studied neighborhoods (with slight differences) due to their similarity in terms of geographical location and existing attractions. Accordingly, tourism has, from the economic viewpoint, increased the revenues of the neighborhoods’ residents, boosted job opportunities, and changed the income resources. However, it paved the ground for some restaurant owners’ exploitation of foreign tourists and provided the traffic warden with false income. On the other hand, while the expansion of social interactions, the prevalence of some social anomalies, immigrant reception, and overcrowding were identified as the social consequences of tourism development in Darband and Darake neighborhoods, the development of cultural exchanges and learning English as a second language were found as the cultural consequences of such a development, contributing to cultural conflicts between the host and guest communities. Finally, environmental pollution, damages incurred to vegetation and wildlife, physical and land use changes, and the efforts made to increase the number of restaurants and improve their quality were identified as the main environmental consequences of tourism development in the neighborhoods mentioned above. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
11 - Identifying and Analyzing the Driving Forces Involved in Developing Tourism Industry in Kondoleh Village, Sahneh City
mitra jaliliyan Mohammad Akbarpour Jafar TavakoliAbstract Tourism is regarded as an inflectional factor in developing the communications between nations worldwide in today’s world, providing job opportunities in the economic sector and fostering socio-cultural interactions. On the other hand, rural tourism has widely MoreAbstract Tourism is regarded as an inflectional factor in developing the communications between nations worldwide in today’s world, providing job opportunities in the economic sector and fostering socio-cultural interactions. On the other hand, rural tourism has widely been researched by a wide variety of scholars around the world, as it can help create new jobs, increase the residents’ revenues, and mitigate poverty, especially in villages that enjoy cultural attractions. Therefore, this sought to investigate the key factors and influential driving forces involved in developing tourism in Kandoleh village using the Delphi method and the future study approach. This study is considered applied in terms of purpose, carried out based on new methods followed in the future study, and novel exploratory and analyzing techniques using a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods. In this regard, the key indices were identified via Delphi method, and the critical driving forces were detected based on the cross-impact analysis method using the Mick Mac software. The study’s results suggested that out of the twenty-eight key factors identified, efficient management and designation of Kandoleh village as the pilot site for rural tourism were the most influential elements in developing tourism within the village, followed by factors such as increased investments by the private sector, advertising, registering and preserving historical and cultural monuments, and providing security for tourists, respectively. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
12 - Investigating the Influence of Internal Marketing on Employees' Job Performance Mediated by Knowledge-sharing and The Moderating Role of Communication: A Case Study of Mashhad’s Four and Five-Star Hotels
Ghasem Eslami Farshad GhaderiToday's social community pays great attention to human resources. In other words, the performance of employees in the service sector, especially the tourism industry, is becoming increasingly important. On the other hand, tourism industry employees contribute significan MoreToday's social community pays great attention to human resources. In other words, the performance of employees in the service sector, especially the tourism industry, is becoming increasingly important. On the other hand, tourism industry employees contribute significantly to creating a competitive advantage, with organizations with better-performing employees experiencing better business growth. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the influence of internal marketing on the employees’ job performance mediated by knowledge sharing and the moderating role of communication. The current study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive survey in terms of method. The statistical population of the study comprised the 390 employees of four and five-star hotels in Mashhad. The required data were collected from the administered questionnaires, which were then analyzed via structural equation modeling using the AMOS software. The findings of the study indicated that internal marketing exerted a positive significant influence on knowledge sharing and staff performance. Moreover, knowledge sharing was found to have a positive effect on employees' job performance. Furthermore, the positive effects of the moderating role of organizational communication and knowledge sharing were also confirmed. The present research is descriptive-survey in terms of applied purpose and method of work. The statistical population of the study includes the staff of hotels in Mashhad. The collected data from 390 questionnaires were analyzed by structural equation modeling with AMOS software. Findings showed that internal marketing has a positive and significant effect on knowledge sharing and employee performance. At the same time, knowledge sharing has a positive effect on employees' job performance. Another result was that the moderator role of organizational communication was also confirmed. In addition, the role of knowledge sharing interface was also confirmed. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
13 - Tourism Policymaking, Local Community Support, Place Image, Tourism Impacts, Tourism in Semnan
Zohre Kiani FeizAbadi Farnaz NikKhah Elisa taherianTourism policies widely affect the lives of local residents. On the other hand, the effectiveness of such policies depends on the local community’s support and participation. Therefore, the present study sought to investigate the influence of the Local Community’s Place MoreTourism policies widely affect the lives of local residents. On the other hand, the effectiveness of such policies depends on the local community’s support and participation. Therefore, the present study sought to investigate the influence of the Local Community’s Place Image and their perception of tourism impacts on their support for tourism policies in Semnan. To this end, some 340 questionnaires were distributed among local residents, out of which 322 questionnaires were completed by the respondents. The collected data were then analyzed by PLS software using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results indicated that the residents’ place image had a direct significant effect on their perception of tourism impacts and consequently on their support for tourism development policies. Moreover, the findings highlighted the necessity of evaluating tourism impacts based on the perceptions of residents, because the more favorable they consider the tourism impacts, the more support they give to tourism development policies. Finally, this study suggests some policy recommendations on how to manage the local community’s place image, their perceptions of tourism impacts, and their support for tourism policy-making. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
14 - Brand Citizenship Behavior, Brand Leadership, Brand Passion, Isfahan, SEM
amirreza konjkav monfared saeid saeida ardakani farzaneh zarabkhanehConsidering the fact that human resources are regarded as the most important key qualification and the source of creating competitive advantage in the hoteling industry, this sought to investigate the effect of brand leadership on the brand citizenship behavior of the s MoreConsidering the fact that human resources are regarded as the most important key qualification and the source of creating competitive advantage in the hoteling industry, this sought to investigate the effect of brand leadership on the brand citizenship behavior of the staff working in the hoteling industry of Isfahan City. The study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive survey in terms of research method. The statistical population of the study comprised all Isfahan Hotels’ staff who were active from September to January 2020, from among whom 145 people were selected via a structural equation and convenience sampling. The required data were collected through the questionnaire, whose reliability and content validity was verified using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Finally, the collected data were analyzed through the PLS software, considering non-normal distribution. The findings of the study suggested that brand leadership exerted a significant positive effect on brand passion, thereby making brand-supportive behaviors (adaptive, conscientious-oriented, and innovative behaviors) possible. Moreover, it was found that adaptive and innovative behaviors had a significant positive influence on brand citizenship behavior. However, the significant effect of brand innovative behaviors on brand citizenship behavior was not confirmed. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
15 - Identification of Tourism Marketing Factors via Metasynthesis
aziz arfai Farshid NamamianAbstract As the most widespread service industry in the world, tourism has managed to take center stage among many managers and researchers. Hence, pinpointing the factors of tourism marketing and offering optimal solutions towards facilitation of tourist absorption a MoreAbstract As the most widespread service industry in the world, tourism has managed to take center stage among many managers and researchers. Hence, pinpointing the factors of tourism marketing and offering optimal solutions towards facilitation of tourist absorption are of prime significance. Not to mention, since only few factors of tourism marketing have been addressed in previous studies, the present research aimed to identify the tourism marketing factors via metasynthesis. In this exploratory applied research, the entire studies on tourism marketing, conducted over 2000-2020, were taken into consideration. To this end, 580 studies were assessed, of which 87 were finally selected purposefully. Finally, through content analysis and combining the relevant literature using open, pivotal and selective coding methods, 78 codes, 21 concepts and six categories were selected and analyzed, whose validity were supported by Cohen’s Kappa Coefficient.The results demonstrated that the key categories were as follows: integrated marketing (incentive promotional mixes), satisfaction, relationship marketing, internal marketing, electronic marketing, and ICT factors. Further, a deep understanding of the existing literature on tourism marketing is presented by the present study. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
16 - Bibliometric Analysis, Tourism Experience, Computational Literature Review, Co-occurrence Network, Co-authorship Network
leila ilchi mesbah seivandian amir salar vanakiThis study set out to investigate the trend of studies conducted on tourist experience using bibliometric analysis. To this end, the study analyzed 2683 articles published in the Web of Science database from 1980 to 2020 using the VOS Viewer software to visualize and an MoreThis study set out to investigate the trend of studies conducted on tourist experience using bibliometric analysis. To this end, the study analyzed 2683 articles published in the Web of Science database from 1980 to 2020 using the VOS Viewer software to visualize and analyze the results. In this regard, two analysis levels were considered. At the first level, the publication trend and the impact factor of authors, journals, and articles were examined. At the second level, the structure of the co-occurrence network of keywords and the co-authorship network of authors, institutions, and countries were analyzed. The findings of the study indicated a significantly growing trend of studies (most of which were published in 2019) conducted on tourism experience in recent years, which is expected to continue to grow in the future. On the other hand, hospitality and leisure, management, and environmental studies were found as the highly researched areas, with most articles being published on tourism experience. Moreover, social media, trust, user opinions, and competitiveness are among the emerging research areas in the relevant literature. In this regard, health tourism, culinary tourism, social experience, shared value creation, authenticity, cultural experience, destination experience, backpackers, information technology, cultural differences, cultural heritage, students’ experiences, sustainable management, and transportation are among the main topics addressed in the literature. On the other hand, the analysis of the authors' co-authorship network revealed that thirty-five research groups are currently working in this field worldwide, with the Hong Kong Polytechnic University exerting the highest influence on the international collaboration network. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
17 - Designing a model to control deviant behavior among hotel staff with respect to perceived organizational support, burnout and job satisfaction
Shahed Zandipak Rabeah Zandipak*Perceived organizational support, burnout, and job satisfaction are variables that can be effective in predicting the extent of deviant behaviors in the organization. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of perceived organizational support and burnout on de MorePerceived organizational support, burnout, and job satisfaction are variables that can be effective in predicting the extent of deviant behaviors in the organization. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of perceived organizational support and burnout on deviant behavior mediated by job satisfaction. The present study is applied in terms of purpose, descriptive-survey in terms of nature and method. To test the hypotheses, a questionnaire consisting of 21 questions arranged according to the Likert 7-choice spectrum was used. The statistical population of the study includes the staff of three, four and five star hotels in Mashhad with more than 1000 people; The sample size was 278 people, which was selected based on Krejcie and Morgan table by relative stratification method and Cronbach's alpha coefficient was calculated using Spss software and confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate the validity of the structure using Lisrel software. In order to analyze the findings, the path analysis model was used and to analyze the mediating variable, the Sobel test was used. The results showed that perceived organizational support and burnout can have a significant direct and indirect effect on deviant behavior. To investigate the role of the mediator variable, the Sabel test method was used, which showed that job satisfaction plays the role of the mediator variable in the relationship between other variables. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
18 - Investigating the Relationship between Ecotourism Motivations and Site Revisit at Soleyman-Tangeh Region in Sari, Mazandaran Province
Bahram Nekouie Sadry Elahe Heidari Boroujeni FATEMEH FEHRESTMotivation is considered as the main driving force in tourists’ behavior and an important basis for their decision making. This study sought to examine the ecotourists’ motivations for their travels and the impact of motivations (intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivati MoreMotivation is considered as the main driving force in tourists’ behavior and an important basis for their decision making. This study sought to examine the ecotourists’ motivations for their travels and the impact of motivations (intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation) on their intention to revisit the destination according to the self-determined psychological theory. To this end, a questionnaire was administered on 163 visitors of the Soleiman-Tangeh region during the first week of August 2015 who were selected via convenience sampling. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistical methods, mean and one-sample t-test. To examine the relationship between variables, Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise multiple regression analysis were utilized.The findings of the study showed that from among the three forms of ecotourists’ motivation, i.e., intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, amotivation, it was merely the intrinsic motivation that had a significant and positive relationship with the possibility of revisiting the Soleiman-Tangeh region, indicating that an increase in the ecotourists’ intrinsic motivation would increase the chances of revisiting the Soleiman-Tangeh region in the future. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
19 - Taxonomy of Tourists Based on Accommodation Types in Mashhad
Arash Ghahreman Ahmadreza AsgharpourMasouleh omid Ali kharzmi Mohsen Noghani Dokht Bahmani hosein AkbariThis survey study's main goal was to present a taxonomy of tourists visiting Mashhad according to their accommodation type. The required data were collected by administering a researcher-developed questionnaire on domestic tourists who visited Mashhad in the winter of 2 MoreThis survey study's main goal was to present a taxonomy of tourists visiting Mashhad according to their accommodation type. The required data were collected by administering a researcher-developed questionnaire on domestic tourists who visited Mashhad in the winter of 2019. The accommodation centers' typology was done based on qualitative typology and taxonomy. The former was done based on cost and grade criteria, and the latter was carried out by ''two stages clustering analysis ''. The study's findings indicated that most of Mashhad tourists (97%) were considered loyal visitors who had visited there frequently. Measured in terms of individualistic-collective criterion, the visitors' travel style was found to be collective (81%). On the other hand, based on the Institutional-Independent criterion, the visitors' travel style was Independent (68%). Taking the ethnographic factors and the characteristics of the visitors' travel into account, three types of tourists were identified as follows: ''non-individual less frequent visitors'' (37%), '' short-stay costly visitors" ' (36%), and '' frequent frugal visitors'' (26%). The first group accommodated in guesthouses, rental houses, and low-grade hotels and hotel-apartments. The second group accommodated in high-grade hotels, hotel-apartments, and guesthouses; the third group accommodated in their relative's houses or personal homes. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
20 - Designing a model for intrapreneurship development in Sports Recreation Complexes
Taghi Ashouri hamidreza ghezelsefloo meysam asgarshamsi· ##اسکوئیان، سنجر و حسینی گوهری، مریم. (1391). «بررسی عوامل درونسازمانی مؤثر بر کارآفرینی سازمانی». کنفرانس ملی کارآفرینی و مدیریت کسبوکارهای دانشبنیان. بابلسر. آبان ماه.##اسمعیلی، محمد. (1397). «تبیین رابطه حمایت سازمانی ادراک شده و رفتار شهروندی سازمانی». More· ##اسکوئیان، سنجر و حسینی گوهری، مریم. (1391). «بررسی عوامل درونسازمانی مؤثر بر کارآفرینی سازمانی». کنفرانس ملی کارآفرینی و مدیریت کسبوکارهای دانشبنیان. بابلسر. آبان ماه.##اسمعیلی، محمد. (1397). «تبیین رابطه حمایت سازمانی ادراک شده و رفتار شهروندی سازمانی». مجله نخبگان علوم و مهندسی. 3 (1). 1-12.##اندام، رضا؛ منتظری، امیر و فیضی، سمیرا. (1393). «بررسی ابعاد کیفیت خدمات در گردشگری ورزشی». مطالعات مدیریت ورزشی. (26). 36-15.##ایمانیپور، نرگس و زیودار، مهدی. (1387). «بررسی رابطهی گرایش به کارآفرینی شرکتی و عملکرد». توسعه کارآفرینی. 1 (2). 11-34.##آصفی، احمدعلی؛ خبیری، محمد؛ اسدی دستجردی، حسن و گودرزی، محمود. (1393). «بررسی عوامل سازمانی مؤثر در نهادینه کردن ورزش همگانی در ایران». پژوهشنامه مدیریت ورزشی و رفتار حرکتی. 10 (20). 63-76. ##بالوندی، علی حیدر و زردشتیان، شیرین. (1398). «اثر شیوههای مدیریت استراتژیک منابع انسانی بر عملکرد سازمانی با نقش میانجی نوآوری سازمانی در کارشناسان وزارت ورزش و جوانان». مدیریت منابع انسانی در ورزش. 6 (2). 221-239.##پورسلطانی زرندی، حسین و ایرجی نقندر، رامین. (1391). «ارتباط درک حمایت سازمانی با تعهد سازمانی و رضایت شغلی کارکنان ادارهی کل ورزش و جوانان استان مازندران در سال 1390». مجله مدیریت و رفتار سازمانی در ورزش. 1 (1). 2322-3103.##جابری، اکبر؛ سلیمی، مهدی و خزائی پول، جواد. (1392). «بررسی تأثير انگیزشهای درونی و بیرونی بر تسهیم دانش کارکنان در سازمانهای ورزشی (مطالعهی موردی کارمندان ادارات تربیت بدنی استان اصفهان)». مدیریت ورزشی. (14). 55-75.##داوری، علی و رضازاده، آرش. (1393). «مدل سازی معادلات ساختاری با نرم افزار PLS». سازمان انتشارات جهاد دانشگاهی. چاپ دوم. تهران.##زهره وندیان، کریم و ابراهیمی، فرشته. (1392). «ارائه مدل پیشنهادی برای مکان گزینی اماکن ورزشی با استفاده از تلفیق سیستم اطلاعات جغرافیایی ( (GISو روشهای تصمیمگیری چندمعیاره (MCDM)». مطالعات مدیریت ورزشی. (21). 111-126. ##علیمردانی، محمد؛ فراهانی، ابوالفضل و قاسمی، سیدحمید. (1394). «ارتباط بین فرهنگ سازمانی با کارآفرینی سازمانی در اداره کل ورزش و جوانان استان قم». پژوهشهای کاربردی در مدیریت ورزشی. 4 (1) شماره 13 پیاپی: 25-34.##غلامرضا تبار دیوکلائی، زهرا؛ فرزادفر، رامین و تورانی، نجمه. (1391). «مثلث تعامل مدیریت تکنولوژی، مدیریت دانش و مدیریت نوآوری». کنفرانس ملی کارآفرینی و مدیریت کسب و کارهای دانش بنیان. دانشگاه مازندران، مازندران.##فراهانی، حسین و منوچهری، سوران. (1394). «شناسایی موانع و مشکلات توسعه گردشگری در مناطق روستایی هدف گردشگری شرق مریوان». پژوهش و برنامهریزی روستایی. 4 (1). 174-161.##قربانی قهفرخی، لیلا؛ کلانی نسب، مرضیه؛ یاراحمدی، معصومه و فتحی، فریبرز. (1397). نقش ساختار سازمانی در بهکارگیری مدیریت مشارکتی در اداره کل ورزش و جوانان استان هرمزگان. فصلنامه علمی - پژوهشی مطالعات مدیریت رفتار سازمانی در ورزش5 .(1). 45-54.##کیاکجوری، داود و فاضلی ویسری، الهام. (1389). «شناسایی موانع داخلی، محیطی و برآیندی کارافرینی سازمانی مطالعه موردی: اداره کل بنادر و کشتیرانی استان مازندران- بندر نوشهر». فصلنامه پژوهشگر (مدیریت). 7 (20). 94-108.##لشکربلوکی، م. (1390). جاری سازی راهبرد (راهنمای گام به گام پیاده سازی در عمل). تهران .انتشارات آریانا قلم.##محبیفر، رفعت؛ بخشیان، محمود و رفیعی، سیما. (1395). «تأثير پاداش سازمانی بر عملکرد کارکنان با نقش میانجی انگیزش در بیمارستانهای اموزشی شهر قزوین». فصلنامه علمی پژوهشهای سلامت محور. 2 (3). 223-232.##محمودی، احمد؛ کارگر، غلامعلی؛ متقی شهری، محمدحسن و اسلامی، ایوب. (1393). «بررسی نقش چابکی سازمانی در آمادگی برای تغییر در کارکنان اداره کل ورزش و جوانان استان البرز». پژوهشهای معاصر در مدیریت ورزشی. 4 (8). 15-28. ##مددی، حمید. (1392). «بررسی رابطه سرمایه اجتماعی با کارآفرینی درونسازمانی». فصلنامه مدیریت توسعه و تحول. 14. 39-49. ##موسویراد، سیدهطاهره و فراهانی، ابوالفضل. (1393). «طراحی و تدوین مدل کارآفرینی ورزشی مبتنی بر رابطه منابع کارآفرینی سازمانی با خروجیهای کارآفرینی سازمانی در وزارت ورزش و جوانان». رویکردهای نوین در مدیریت ورزشی. (4) 2. 77-85.##نوربخش، مهوش؛ محرم زاده، مهرداد و نجف زاده، فرخ لقا. (1390). «بررسی مهمترین عوامل جذبکننده و بازدارنده مؤثر بر توسعه گردشگری ورزشی بانوان استان آذربایجان غربی با تأكيد بر جاذبههای طبیعی- ورزشی». دومین همایش ملی تخصصی مدیریت ورزشی، دانشگاه صنعتی شاهرود.##وفایی، فاطمه و مقیمی، سید محمد. (1389). «ارتباط کارآمدی سامانه الکترونیکی فرآیندهای اداری و کارآفرینی درونسازمانی دانشگاه تهران» . فصلنامه اقتصاد و تجارت نوین. شماره 21 و 22. 99-122.##هنرور، افشار؛ قنبری فیروزآبادی، علیرضا و خطیبزاده، مهدی. (1392). «ویژگیهای جمعیتشناختی و اولویتهای گردشگران ورزشی در ایران». فصلنامه پژوهش در مدیریت ورزشی، دانشگاه علامه طباطبایی. 2 (5). 1-24.##Alam, Muhammad Zubair; Kousar, Shazia & Kaleem, Muhammad Ali. (2020). Personality traits and intrapreneurial behavior Moderated role of knowledge sharing behavior in diverse group of employees in developing country. Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 14 (1), 31-46. ##Aminuddin Yusof, Mohd Sofian Omar-Fauzee, Parilah Mohd Shah, Soh Kim Geok. (2009). Exploring Small-Scale Sport Event Tourism in Malaysia. Research Journal of Internatıonal Studıes , 9, 47-58.##Beugelsdijk S. .(2008). Strategic human resource practices and product innovation. Organization Stydies, 29 (06), 821–847.##Bouckenooghe, D. Devos, G. & Van Den Broeck, H. (2009). Organizational Changequestionnaire-Climate of Change, Processes and Readiness: Development of A Newinstrument. Journal of Psychology,143 (6), 559–599.##Buckens, Wim. (2014). 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Open Access Article
21 - Investigating the Effect of Tourists Visits on Social Health of Host Communities: A Case Study of Select Tourism villages of Binalood city
tahereh Sadeghloo mitra yarahmadi), which is a statistical measure and gives investors a clue concerning volatility, is calculated to determine the extent to which companies are exposed to systematic risk. However, the asymmetry of information between the internal and external environment of small and More), which is a statistical measure and gives investors a clue concerning volatility, is calculated to determine the extent to which companies are exposed to systematic risk. However, the asymmetry of information between the internal and external environment of small and medium-sized companies makes such studies more complex. According to the panel-data model results, the size of companies and the amount of their advertising have an adverse effect on systematic risk. Manuscript profile -
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22 - Semantic reconstruction of the phenomenon of collective Nature-Based tourism among the people of Ilam City
Ali Feizolahi yarmohammad ghassemi farhad sabzifardThis qualitative study sought to identify the causes and effects of the phenomenon of collective nature-based tourism among the people living in Ilam City using the grounded theory method. The population of the study comprised all residents of Ilam City in 2019, among w MoreThis qualitative study sought to identify the causes and effects of the phenomenon of collective nature-based tourism among the people living in Ilam City using the grounded theory method. The population of the study comprised all residents of Ilam City in 2019, among whom twenty-four people were selected through purposive sampling until theoretical saturation was reached. The required data were collected via semi-structured in-depth interviews, which were then analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. In the open coding stage, 928 semantic propositions and 157 basic concepts were identified, which were then categorized into 27 axial categories in the axial coding stage. Finally, the core category was identified based on the content analysis of the axial categories identified in the previous stage. The findings of the study indicated the effective role of causal conditions, curiosity, psychological reinvigoration, nostalgia, and conspicuous consumption on the spread of collective nature-based tourism. Moreover, it was found that contextual conditions, including environmental and climatic conditions, economic status, family background, holidays, and spatial belonging on the one hand, and intervening conditions such as the lack of leisure facilities in the city, and temporal and gender limitations on the other hand, were also involved in such a phenomenon. On the other hand, the findings revealed that the people living in Ilam opted for health-oriented, taste-oriented, culture-oriented, and destructive interactions and strategies while trying to improve social relations. In general, the core category of "collective nature-based tourism as a manifestation of opportunities and threats" was extracted from the content analysis of axial codes, indicating that this kind of tourism creates opportunities for individuals to improve their mental and emotional well-being and social life and strengthen their solidarity. However, it can bring about some threats to nature, including its destruction which may be caused by dumping waste, deforestation, and hunting. Manuscript profile -
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23 - Developing an Innovative Business Model for Tourism Industry with an Emphasis on Creating Value in Tourist Destination: A Case Study of Mashhad City, Iran
hossein ghadami hadi bastam Ali HosseinzadehAs one of the most important industries worldwide, the tourism industry has led to the rapid growth of economic development, preparing the grounds for the development of new businesses, which has proved very effective in expanding job opportunities for different walks o MoreAs one of the most important industries worldwide, the tourism industry has led to the rapid growth of economic development, preparing the grounds for the development of new businesses, which has proved very effective in expanding job opportunities for different walks of life. Therefore, this exploratory study sought to develop an innovative business model for the tourism industry with an emphasis on creating value in the destination using a grounded theory method. The required data were collected through library studies and semi-structured interviews. To this end, open and in-depth interviews were made with 16 experts until the theoretical saturation was reached. The participants comprised experts of the tourism industry, university professors, hotel managers, guides of travel agencies and tours, heads, and officials of tourism industry departments, and tourists, who were selected via purposive sampling. The collected data were thematically analyzed according to open, axial, and selective coding. Finally, the conceptual model of the study was developed based on the Strauss and Corbin model, indicating that the core principle underlying the development of diverse advantage-oriented businesses is derived from casual conditions and influenced by contextual factors. It was also found that the core principle could be identified based on some strategies. Moreover, the intervening factors were extracted from the textual data collected from the interviewees by identifying the categories that indicate environmental conditions. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
24 - Review of Ecotourism Businesses Based on the Local Economy and Knowledge for Gaining Lessons
Maryam Mohammadi Helia ZargarimarandiMaking purposeful use of the natural environment, ecotourism plays a crucial role in empowering local communities, whose economy could be improved through the application of local knowledge. Therefore, this study sought to identify the formal-functional criteria affecti MoreMaking purposeful use of the natural environment, ecotourism plays a crucial role in empowering local communities, whose economy could be improved through the application of local knowledge. Therefore, this study sought to identify the formal-functional criteria affecting the success of internet-based ecotourism businesses, and the content criteria regarding the local knowledge and economy. Moreover, the study undertook to elaborate on the effective criteria involved in the success of the relevant businesses in Iran. To do so, first, the intended criteria were developed by reviewing the related literature and performing content analysis. Then, the criteria involved in the success or failure of some select Iranian internet-based ecotourism businesses (15 businesses out of the final 44 businesses qualified to be studied in this research, which had been selected and filtered out of 91 businesses in 2019) were identified via expert-oriented quantitative evaluation. Finally, 120 online questionnaires were administered to target groups (Ecotourists and tour guides). The collected data were then analyzed via the SPSS software using Gamma and Contingency Coefficient correlation tests, followed by the validation of the criteria involved in the success of the Iranian internet-based ecotourism businesses. As indicated by the results of the study, providing local guides, organizing tours in untouched regions, and providing the opportunity for tourists to participate in ritual ceremonies were found as the main criteria involved in the success of Internet-based businesses in terms of local knowledge. Moreover, the local-economy-based criteria included the creation of job opportunities by providing a variety of tourism activities and services, providing accommodation, food, services, food, car rental services, etc. On the other hand, offering financial and cultural-educational support through holding free educational courses together with other formal-functional aspects of the platform may also contribute to the success of the aforementioned businesses. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
25 - Developing a Dynamic Model for Predicting Responsible Travel Intentions Based on the Complexities of Maslow's Needs Pyramid
mahnaz Doosti-Irani Hamed Fallah TaftiThis applied qualitative study sought to classify the factors involved in responsible travel intentions based on Maslow's needs pyramid and elaborate on the causal relationships between the factors so that it can offer a more effective model for marketing sustainable to MoreThis applied qualitative study sought to classify the factors involved in responsible travel intentions based on Maslow's needs pyramid and elaborate on the causal relationships between the factors so that it can offer a more effective model for marketing sustainable tourism. To this end, the factors were identified and categorized using the content analysis of the data collected via reviewing the related literature and conducting interviews with apropos experts. Then, systemic thinking was used qualitatively (validated through the experts’ opinions) to develop the interpretive model of causal relations. According to the study’s findings, 23 factors were classified into five categories based on Maslow's needs pyramid as follows: Physiological needs (perceived quality, price, shopping habits, and perceived behavioral control), safety (protection and beliefs concerning the health in responsible travels), love/attachment (environmental concerns, sense of responsibility, perceived effectiveness, environmental awareness, environmental value, spatial belonging, and emotional dependence on residents), respect (social norms, identity representation, satisfaction, advertising, social media content, attitude regarding the responsible travel, beliefs concerning the luxurious nature of responsible travel, and the image of responsible travel), and self-actualization (self-transcendence and personal norms). Moreover, the proposed conceptual model indicated the mutual influence of the factors and categories on each other. Therefore, marketers are required to plan their intended interventions after prioritizing the target group’s responsible needs and selecting the category of needs using systemic thinking. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
26 - Identifying Componential Elements of Tourism Marketing Using Metasynthesis Method
Ehsan DorostkarAs the most widely provided service industry worldwide, tourism has attracted the attention of a wide variety of managers and researchers. Therefore, it is crucially important to identify the componential elements involved in tourism marketing and offer optimal solution MoreAs the most widely provided service industry worldwide, tourism has attracted the attention of a wide variety of managers and researchers. Therefore, it is crucially important to identify the componential elements involved in tourism marketing and offer optimal solutions to facilitate tourist attraction. Considering the fact that previous has merely partially investigated the factors involved in tourism marketing, this study sought to conduct a comprehensive examination of such factors, systematically reviewing the expansive related literature. This study is considered exploratory in terms of purpose and applied in terms of nature, using the meta-synthesis method to analyze the collected data. The study’s statistical population comprised 580 studies conducted from 2000 to 2020, out of which 87 studies were selected using purposive sampling. The collected data were then gone through content analysis, coded based on open, axial, and selective coding methods, according to which 78 codes, 21 concepts, and six categories were identified and analyzed using the meta-synthesis method. Finally, the validity of the analyzed data was confirmed by Cohen’s Kappa Coefficient. According to the study’s results, the main categories identified for tourism marketing were as follows: integrated marketing (incentive promotional mixtures); satisfaction; relationship marketing; internal marketing; electronic marketing; and ICT factors. Therefore, it could be argued that this study offers a deep understanding of the existing literature on tourism marketing. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
27 - Augmented Reality Technology: A Novel Marketing Tool in Tourism Industry
niloufar hadianfarIntroduction: Many businesses were challenged by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020 worldwide. Meanwhile, the tourism industry was among those industries that were affected the most by the pandemic, suffering huge losses economically. Therefore, conside MoreIntroduction: Many businesses were challenged by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020 worldwide. Meanwhile, the tourism industry was among those industries that were affected the most by the pandemic, suffering huge losses economically. Therefore, considering the restrictions imposed by governments on tourists’ travels to counter the spread of the virus, turning to virtual tourism can partially compensate for some of the losses incurred in this regard. Goal: Investigating the potential tourists' attitudes toward AR applications, their intention to use them in their future travels, and, similarly, their intention to recommend these applications to others. Methods: The required data were collected via online questionnaires using the convenient sampling method. The research questions were then analyzed via the SPSS software using a binominal test. Findings & Results: The results indicated the positive attitude of the respondents and their high willingness to use and recommend this application to others. Conclusion: The findings of the study suggested that the respondents had a positive attitude towards using AR-based applications and that they were willing to use them for their future travels. Moreover, it was found that they were ready to recommend such applications to others. Therefore, AR technology could be regarded as an opportunity for marketing managers of tourist destinations to use to maintain public awareness of their destinations’ brands during the lockdown imposed upon the outbreak of pandemics such as covid-19. Moreover, this new technology can help flourish tourist destinations by creating added value for tourists. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
28 - Investigating the Citizens' Attitude Towards Liveliness of Pedestrian Streets: A Case Study of Charbagh Abbasi Street, Isfahan, Iran
Zahra masaeli samar haghighiEnhancing the quality and liveliness of pedestrian zones is being increasingly turned into a significant scenario in the process of tourism development among competing actors at national, regional, and international scales. However, many projects regarding the developme MoreEnhancing the quality and liveliness of pedestrian zones is being increasingly turned into a significant scenario in the process of tourism development among competing actors at national, regional, and international scales. However, many projects regarding the development of pedestrian tourism routes are not welcomed by the public when operationalized due to their lack of liveness, despite the huge costs and time dedicated to them in the pre-planning phase. Therefore, the main question posed in this regard is whether there is any significant difference between different people in terms of knowing the factors involved in the liveliness of urban pedestrian zones. The answer to this question could be of great importance, especially in countries like Iran where the decisions to intervene in public spaces are taken unilaterally without the participation of the prospective users of such projects. Thus, this study sought to identify the barriers to obtaining liveliness in Charbagh Abbasi Pedestrian Street" in Isfahan via the Q method, trying to analyze the attitude of different people in this regard using Q factor analysis. To this end, ten frequent users of Charbagh Abbasi Pedestrian Street were selected via snowball sampling method, ten subjects were selected. Moreover, the required data were collected via semi-structured interviews with those ten participants and the review of the related literature, based on which some thirty-nine barriers were identified and prioritized. Finally, Based on the findings of Q factor analysis, the attitude of the participants was classified into three main categories. In other words, the findings of the study revealed three different perspectives on the barriers to obtaining the desired liveliness in such an urban space. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
29 - Investigating the Effect of Digital Revolution on Tourism Business Trends
Seyed Mojtaba Mahmodzadeh Fatemeh Izadi Yazdanabadi Tahereh Ashtiani Aliasghar HeydariAs an influential basis of development worldwide, especially economic development, tourism currently lies at the center of the world governments’ main policies in job creation, entrepreneurship, and promoting sustainable businesses. On the other hand, by naming the year MoreAs an influential basis of development worldwide, especially economic development, tourism currently lies at the center of the world governments’ main policies in job creation, entrepreneurship, and promoting sustainable businesses. On the other hand, by naming the year 2018 as “Tourism and Digital Revolution', the World Tourism Organization clearly indicates the significance of the digital revolution and its influence on the sustainable growth of the tourism industry. Considering the influence of the digital revolution on all aspects of human life, including travel and tourism, businesses and organizations involved in tourism have no other choice but to adapt themselves to the current dynamic and ever-changing environment. Therefore, this applied descriptive-survey research sought to examine the effects of the digital revolution on tourism businesses using a quantitative approach. The population of the study comprised the staff of tourism businesses working in Tehran city, among whom 385 people were selected via random sampling. The required data were collected through a questionnaire administered to the participants of the study, which were then analyzed using the SPSS24 and Smart-PLS2 software. The study’s findings indicated that the rate of digital revolution status was above average in terms of all the indices included in the study’s conceptual model. Moreover, the overall role of the digital revolution in tourism businesses was assessed using a single sample T-test. Accordingly, the average rate of most of the twenty-five indices investigated in the study was found to be greater than 4, indicating the influence of the digital revolution on all aspects of tourism organizations which may bring about some changes in tourism businesses. On the other hand, Friedman's variance analysis test revealed a significant difference between the mean ranks of digital revolution components in tourism, with its greatest influence being on human resources training and development. Therefore, it seems necessary to invest in employing and training human resources that can deal with such developments. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
30 - Developing a Model for the Destination’s Brand Identity Using Grounded Theory
hadi asghari Hamed Bakhshi Mozghan Azimihashemi Mohammad Hossein Imani khoshkhoEstablishing a brand identity for tourism destinations may help ease the problems caused by the intangibility of tourism products and increase the concerted efforts of tourism service providers, ensuring stability in markets and facilitating the process of market segmen MoreEstablishing a brand identity for tourism destinations may help ease the problems caused by the intangibility of tourism products and increase the concerted efforts of tourism service providers, ensuring stability in markets and facilitating the process of market segmentation. Therefore, considering the necessity for more attention to the destination’s brand identity due to increased competition within the tourism industry, this qualitative study sought to develop a model for establishing a brand identity for Mashhad city using the grounded theory method. To this end, some twelve managers, professors, and researchers working in the field of brand and tourism in Mashhad were selected to participate in detailed semi-structured interviews using purposive sampling. Then, the collected data were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding. The study’s findings indicated the positive role of personal factors such as awareness of the destination’s brand or the tourists’ behavioral intentions in developing the brand identity of tourist destinations, which in turn influence the relevant strategies. In other words, such factors help the official select appropriate distinct marketing or development strategies, bringing about a variety of outcomes, including socio-economic development. Moreover, it could be argued that the strategies are set on the grounds of participation development in which the destination’s brand identity is formed. However, intervening factors such as micro and macro environmental factors should also be taken into account in this regard. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
31 - Investigating the Role of Interpretation in Politics-Cultural Heritage Interaction in Terms of Developing Islamic Republic of Iran’s Cultural Tourism
Mohammad reza salehi pour akbar pourfaraj Seyed Mojtaba Mahmodzadeh Ahmad golmohammadiThe development of cultural tourism depends on the interaction of a wide variety of factors. On the other hand, considering the fact that the process of cultural tourism is influenced by Politics and that cultural heritage is regarded as a constructive source for cultur MoreThe development of cultural tourism depends on the interaction of a wide variety of factors. On the other hand, considering the fact that the process of cultural tourism is influenced by Politics and that cultural heritage is regarded as a constructive source for cultural tourism, it could be argued that the success of cultural tourism is contingent upon the interaction of Politics and cultural heritage, between which interpretation can act as an intervening factor to establish such an interaction, playing different roles in this regard. This study, therefore, sought to investigate the functions of interpretation as a factor that establish an interaction between politics and cultural heritage and identify the status of such functions in this regard to help the IRI’s cultural tourism benefit from them. To this end, such potential functions were identified by reviewing the related literature and analyzing the qualified experts’ opinions as follows: recalling the spatial identity of historical sites, learning from the ancestors’ works and history, altering the politicians' attitudes towards cultural heritage, strengthening national identity, preserving the historical sites’ structure and spirit, bringing the stakeholders of historical sites closer to each other, fighting against racism and ethnocentrism, correcting historical misunderstandings, converging different cultures, and developing mutual understanding between politicians and the public. Moreover, the surveying phase of the study identified the aggregate opinions of experts concerning the priority of the aforementioned functions using the fuzzy Delphi method. The study’s results revealed that recalling the spatial identity of historical sites, strengthening national identity, and preserving the historical sites’ structure and spirit were those potential functions of interpretation in the interaction between politics and cultural tourism in which the experts had the highest consensus. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
32 - Tourism, Perceived Travel limitations, Seligman's Helplessness Theory, Disabled People
Maedeh Hashemi Zahra NadalipourWhile leisure limitations have long been the subject of research, there has recently been a growing trend in academic studies that examine such limitations in terms of tourism and disability. However, as those studies are merely limited to the identification and elabora MoreWhile leisure limitations have long been the subject of research, there has recently been a growing trend in academic studies that examine such limitations in terms of tourism and disability. However, as those studies are merely limited to the identification and elaboration of the barriers and limitations., the current study sought to investigate the influence of such limitations on the target population. Therefore, based on the study conducted by Lee et al. (2012), the current study set out to investigate the effect of perceived travel limitations on the tourism tendency of physically disabled individuals living in Tehran, Iran, using Seligman's Helplessness Theory. The required data for this applied, descriptive-analytical correlational study was collected through a survey using a researcher-developed questionnaire. The statistical population of the study comprised all physically disabled people, those suffering from spinal cord injury, and war-disabled individuals living in Tehran, out of whom 383 people were selected as the sample size using the convenience sampling method. The findings of the study indicated that tourism limitations perceived by the disabled residents of Tehran did not significantly affect their tourism tendencies. On the other hand, the perceived tourism limitations exerted a positive influence on their learned helplessness. Finally, the learned helplessness of people with disabilities negatively affected their intention to travel. The results of the present study can be used by relevant institutions such as Tehran's municipality, those responsible for urban management, and institutions in charge of the affairs of disabled people. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
33 - Investigating the Influence of Human Resources Management Activities on Customer Loyalty in the Hoteling Industry Using a Multilevel Approach
zahra Nikkhah-Farkhani Mohammad shaykhzadeConsidering the fact that customer loyalty is regarded as one of the most important concerns of hotel managers, this study sought to investigate the influence of human resources management activities on customer loyalty using a multi-level approach. The statistical popu MoreConsidering the fact that customer loyalty is regarded as one of the most important concerns of hotel managers, this study sought to investigate the influence of human resources management activities on customer loyalty using a multi-level approach. The statistical population of the study comprised of managers, staff, and customers of four-star and five-star hotels in Mashhad. Moreover, the statistical sample size of the research at the organization level consisted of thirty-four, one-hundred and forty, two-hundred and forty managers, staff, and customers at organizational, staff, and customer levels, respectively. On the other hand, Sam’s 12-item questionnaire (2008) and the 17-item questionnaire developed by Al-Rafiei et al. (2013) were used to measure the human resources management activities and the staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, respectively, whose validity and reliability was tested using the Content validity method and Cronbach's alpha, respectively. Finally, HLM 7.02 and the SPSS software were used to analyse the collected data. The results proved the positive influence of human resources management activities on the staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, and in turn, on the satisfaction and loyalty of the customers. Therefore, it could be argued that hotel managers can increase the loyalty of their customers by emphasizing human resource management activities and improving their staff’s satisfaction and loyalty, which would increase the profitability of hotels in the long term by reducing marketing costs. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
34 - Investigating the Effect of Error Treatment Atmosphere on Willingness to Quit Jobs in Female Staff: A Case Study of Four and Five-Star Hotels in Mashhad
Ismail Malekakhlagh Farshad GhaderiConstituting half of society, women play a significant role in advancing the goals of different countries in this new social age. On the other hand, as organizations, especially the service-providing ones, are potentially subject to errors, they need to provide an appro MoreConstituting half of society, women play a significant role in advancing the goals of different countries in this new social age. On the other hand, as organizations, especially the service-providing ones, are potentially subject to errors, they need to provide an appropriate environment for treating possible errors. Therefore, this applied survey study sought to investigate the effect of an error treatment atmosphere on the willingness to quit one’s job, considering learning behavior as the mediating factor. The statistical population of the study comprised female staff of four and five-star hotels in Mashhad, out of whom 390 people were selected as participants. Moreover, the required data were collected through a questionnaire, whose form and content validity were evaluated and verified by management experts and its construct validity was measured and confirmed using the confirmatory factor analysis in Amos software. Also, the reliability of different constructs of the questionnaire was confirmed, as the reported Cronbach's alpha coefficient was over 0.7. The findings of the study indicated the positive influence of error management and perceived forgiveness atmosphere on the staff’s learning behavior, with their effect rate being 0.48 and 0.57, respectively. On the other hand, error management atmosphere, perceived forgiveness atmosphere, and learning behavior had a significant influence on reducing the willingness of the staff to quit their jobs, with their effect rates being -0.34, -0.20, and -0.28, respectively. Moreover, the mediating role of the learning behavior in the causal relationships between the error management atmosphere and the willingness to quit one’s job, and between the perceived forgiveness atmosphere and such a willingness was confirmed, with the former and latter’s effect rate being -0.13 and -0.16, respectively. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
35 - Examining the Role of a Community’s Social Media-based Destination Brand in Winning Tourists’ Hearts Towards Co-Creating Values and Visiting the Place
Zohreh Ali Esmaili Armin GoliThis study sought to investigate the role of a community’s social media-based destination brand in winning the tourists’ hearts and convincing them to co-create values and visit the community. The population of this applied survey study comprised of Ramsar visitors who MoreThis study sought to investigate the role of a community’s social media-based destination brand in winning the tourists’ hearts and convincing them to co-create values and visit the community. The population of this applied survey study comprised of Ramsar visitors who discussed it as a travel destination on social media and had used social media to choose Ramsar as a tourist destination. In this regard, 73 media sources where Ramsar had been discussed were selected using a judgmental sampling method. The required data were collected through electronic questionnaires from 384 visitors (out of 450 visitors) who were selected through non-probability convenient sampling. The collected data were then analyzed via SmartPLS software using structural equation modeling and path analysis technique. The findings of the study suggested that a community’s social media-based destination brand had a positive impact on the visitors’ enjoyment of the place, loving the place, and positive surprise towards the destination, persuading them to participate in the co-creation of values and thus revisit the place. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
36 - Assessing the Contributing Factors to the Tourism Professionals’ Attitude and Willingness Towards Green Tourism
mostafa mahmoudi Bahar BishamiEnvironmental crises and the destruction of natural resources are the main problems faced by the tourism industry, whose treatment requires concerted efforts to change the needs and behaviors of tourists and to offer green products and services. In this regard, as touri MoreEnvironmental crises and the destruction of natural resources are the main problems faced by the tourism industry, whose treatment requires concerted efforts to change the needs and behaviors of tourists and to offer green products and services. In this regard, as tourism professionals play an important role in directing the market towards special styles and behaviors, especially environmentally friendly and sustainable behaviors, investigating the factors involved in shaping the attitude and tendency of such professionals to green tourism can help attract the attention of other beneficiaries to this field. The required data for this developmental/applied and descriptive/survey study was collected through a 31-item questionnaire administered to some 102 professionals in the tourism industry who were selected via purposive sampling. The data were then analyzed in the following two parts using the Structural Equation Modeling: 1) the measurement model to be used for examining the technical characteristics of the questionnaire and 2) the structural part to test the research hypotheses. The study’s findings indicated the direct positive influence of religiosity on collectivism, and the indirect effect of religiosity on other variables considered in the study. Moreover, while a positive correlation was found between collectivism, environmental concerns, environmental knowledge, and the tendency toward green tourism, no correlation was observed between religiosity and environmental knowledge, and between environmental knowledge and environmental concerns. Therefore, it is recommended that some courses be added to educational levels concerning how to protect the environment when traveling. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
37 - Investigating the Factors Involved in Tourism Intercultural Communication among Tourists: A Case Study of Hamadan City, Iran
Golnoush jabbari Nader Jafari haftkhaniIn today’s modern world, tourism has turned into an effective way to access the environment and culture through intercultural communication. However, despite its significance in long-term economic development, intercultural communication is neglected in the planning sta MoreIn today’s modern world, tourism has turned into an effective way to access the environment and culture through intercultural communication. However, despite its significance in long-term economic development, intercultural communication is neglected in the planning stages of tourism development projects. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the factors that influence intercultural communication in tourism using a grounded theory approach. To this end, the required data were collected through detailed semi-structured interviews with fifteen experts and professionals in the tourism industry of Hamedan City who were selected via snowball sampling. The collected data were then analyzed, and the results were organized under six main categories with twenty-six sub-categories. Finally, the theoretical model of the study was developed using the Atlas-Ti software. Accordingly, the main six categories of the model included personal characteristics, socio-cultural characteristics, education, producing materials and creating knowledge on intercultural issues in tourism, management and planning, the health and safety of the environment, and media and information technology in intercultural tourism communication. The results of this study propose an integrated approach for tourism managers and entrepreneurs so that they can develop a high level of intercultural communication and competence for tourists. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
38 - Designing a Strategic Model of the Antecedents of Customer’s Experience in the Tourism Industry
soghra taghipour Samad Aali Alireza Bafandeh Zendeh Hakimeh NikiThis study sought to identify the antecedents of customers’ experience in the tourism industry using a mixed-method approach. To this end, first, 246 domestic and foreign relevant articles published from 2010 to 2020 were collected in the qualitative phase using the met MoreThis study sought to identify the antecedents of customers’ experience in the tourism industry using a mixed-method approach. To this end, first, 246 domestic and foreign relevant articles published from 2010 to 2020 were collected in the qualitative phase using the meta-synthesis method, out of which 52 articles were selected and analyzed via the content analysis method. Then, a questionnaire was developed based on the results of the content analysis conducted on the articles mentioned, applying the opinions of 10 experts and specialists in marketing and tourism. The researcher-developed questionnaire was then administered to 440 Iranian tourists who had traveled to Turkey, Malaysia, Azerbaijan, and UAE over the last five years (2016-2021). On the other hand, each construct of the proposed model was examined in terms of mono-dimensionality through a separate measurement model using Kline's method (2005) to ensure that the factor loading of the indicators and the correlation coefficient between factors do not exceed 0.5 and 0.85, respectively. Then, the reliability and validity of the constructs together with the construct validity, convergent validity, and divergent validity were measured, and Cronbach's alpha, Composite Reliability (CR), and Average Variance Extracted (AVE) were calculated. Finally, the model concerning the tourist experience antecedents was developed. According to the results of the study, a model comprising of four main components, including tourist management, tourism destinations’ management, tourism resource management, and tourism product management were developed based on the antecedents of the tourist experience using a mixed method approach (which is one of the innovations of the study). Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
39 - Investigating A Conceptual Link Between Tourism and Social Capital in the Development and Transformation of Society: A Mixed-Method Study
Javad MadaniAs a multifaceted phenomenon, tourism has traditionally existed in different dimensions and areas of society. On the other hand, there are some basic concepts in sociology such as social capital, which, together with the concept of tourism, can foster social development MoreAs a multifaceted phenomenon, tourism has traditionally existed in different dimensions and areas of society. On the other hand, there are some basic concepts in sociology such as social capital, which, together with the concept of tourism, can foster social development and evolution. Therefore, this study sought to develop a model in terms of a conceptual link between tourism and social capital to be used for the development and evolution of society using mixed-method research. To this end, the study used the partially mixed sequential dominant status design approach conducted in three qualitative-qualitative-quantitative phases, according to which systematic review, thematic analysis, and modified Delphi methods were used, respectively. According to the findings of the study, in the first phase, twenty-six English and Persian articles were selected out of 211 reviewed articles using the systematic review method. In the second phase, the data collected through semi-structured interviews were analyzed via the thematic analysis method, according to which sixty-seven basic themes, twenty-six organizing themes, and four inclusive themes were identified and extracted. In the third phase, three rounds of Delphi were conducted to validate the components of the model and examine the extent of the experts’ consensus in this regard using the modified Delphi method. Accordingly, all the experts confirmed the validity of the model’s components. The results of the study indicate the pivotal role of components such as "Providing social support, participating in tourism, observing the civil rights, strengthening social, cultural, and economic infrastructure, etc. in creating a link between tourism and social capital, which can pave the ground for fostering social developments. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
40 - Investigating the Efficiency of Iran's Tourism Industry in Different Climates
maryam asadpour kordi hamid amirnejad seyed hadi naseri ojaki somayeh shirzadi laskukalayehAs a service industry that has significantly expanded in recent years, tourism plays an important role in developing many countries, including Iran, which enjoys various unique historical, religious, cultural, and natural sites and a four-season climate. Therefore, this MoreAs a service industry that has significantly expanded in recent years, tourism plays an important role in developing many countries, including Iran, which enjoys various unique historical, religious, cultural, and natural sites and a four-season climate. Therefore, this study set out to examine the efficiency of Iran's tourism industry using tourism data regarding its 31 provinces during the years 2011 to 2017, including the information concerning the budget allocated to the tourism sector, the number of accommodation places, the number of tourist attraction sites in each province, and the number of domestic and foreign tourists. To this end, Fuzzy Data Envelopment Analysis was used to analyze the collected data. The study's results showed that Ardabil, Tehran, Kohkiluyeh Boyer-Ahmad, and Gilan had had the efficiency in terms of tourism throughout the study period, with their average efficiency as a primary criterion for assessing the efficiency of the country's tourism industry reported as average. Moreover, the analysis of the tourism industry's efficiency in different climates suggested that the highest efficiency belonged to the temperate and humid climate, and the lowest one was related to the hot and dry climate. Therefore, it seems that facilitating transportation infrastructure and providing welfare facilities, especially in provinces with low efficiency, could help use the potentials of different provinces to develop the country's tourism industry. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
41 - Identifying and Prioritizing Development Steps of Cultural Tourism in Lorestan Province Rural Areas
zeinab asadporiyan yaser mohamadi mehdi rahimianThis study sought to identify and prioritize the development steps of cultural tourism in rural areas of Lorestan province using the qualitative-quantitative method and exploratory approach. To this end, at the first stage, 19 semi-structured interviews were conducted w MoreThis study sought to identify and prioritize the development steps of cultural tourism in rural areas of Lorestan province using the qualitative-quantitative method and exploratory approach. To this end, at the first stage, 19 semi-structured interviews were conducted with cultural tourism experts to identify the steps involved in cultural tourism development, out of which thirty-three solutions were identified in four main steps via open, axial, and selective coding. At the second stage, the Delphi-Fuzzy technique was applied in two stages to reach a consensus among the experts and prioritize cultural tourism development steps through the defuzzification process. The results showed that the identified strategies for cultural tourism development in Lorestan province could be categorized into four main steps: "Education and Innovation," "Physical Infrastructure," "Supportive-Institutional," and "Cultural-Advertising." Moreover, since the defuzzificated mean difference of the experts' opinion was less than 0.25 in two steps, all the identified solutions were proved to be valid. The results also indicated that the first and foremost step in tourism development was "education and innovation," followed by physical infrastructure, supportive-institutional, and cultural-promotional steps, respectively. Furthermore, at each step, the most important solutions were found to be advertising for tourism villages, identifying villages with tourism potentials, providing banking facilities for villagers to help them develop tourism, and building cultural elements and particular architectures in rural areas, respectively. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
42 - A Comparative Study of the Tourism Laws’ Hierarchy and Regulations in Iran and Other Countries
Ozra Azizi Ali Asghar Shalbafian aboutaleb ghasemiLaws and regulations are among the most important executive and monitoring tools that help governments fulfill their role in setting tourism development policies, and assessing, controlling, and regulating the relations among tourism stakeholders. Therefore, this study MoreLaws and regulations are among the most important executive and monitoring tools that help governments fulfill their role in setting tourism development policies, and assessing, controlling, and regulating the relations among tourism stakeholders. Therefore, this study sought to examine the structure and titles of tourism laws in China, France, Malaysia, and Turkey and compare them with the relevant laws and regulations exercised in Iran to identify the status of the key issues in the respective hierarchical system of those countries' laws and regulations. To this end, the study followed the comparative law methodology to analyze the content of the laws and regulations mentioned above using a text-based approach. According to the findings of the study, many of the issues that are turned into law in the countries investigated in the current study occupy a lower position in the hierarchy of Iran’s Tourism Laws and Regulations System, being referred to in terms of either by-laws or executive instructions. Moreover, some issues have not been addressed at any level. Therefore, it can be argued that compared to the countries studied in this research, Iran’s tourism sector does not enjoy a proper status in Iran’s legal system. In other words, the current laws and regulations enforced in Iran lack many key tourism-related issues that could help regulate the relations between various relevant stakeholders, prevent unnecessary interventions by different bodies and organizations, reduce the number of lawsuits among the suppliers of tourism services and tourists, or help coordinate the relevant actors in achieving the intended goals. Therefore, the tourism sector needs a centralized, transparent, and comprehensive law. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
43 - Investigating the Factors Affecting the Demand for Medical Tourism in Mashhad
Fatemeh Rahmani pejman avazpoorAs one of the largest and most profitable sub-sectors of tourism worldwide, Medical Tourism is considered an economic activity involving service exchanges, representing the link between at least medicine and tourism sectors. Therefore, this study sought to investigate t MoreAs one of the largest and most profitable sub-sectors of tourism worldwide, Medical Tourism is considered an economic activity involving service exchanges, representing the link between at least medicine and tourism sectors. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the factors affecting the demands for medical tourism in Mashhad using the Multinomial Logit Model, which was estimated by Stata 16 software. The statistical population of the study comprised of domestic medical tourists who visited Mashhad in 2021, out of whom 150 people were selected as the participants. The dependent variable of the study was the demand for medical tourism in Mashhad, that was divided into low, high, and medium classes, and the required data was collected by administering a questionnaire. Accordingly, it was found that an increase in the quality of medical and urban services, low medical costs, and an increase in the tourists’ income would increase the demand for medical tourism in Mashhad. Moreover, the quality of medical services’ sub-indices and urban factors were also evaluated separately by the tourists who participated in this study. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
44 - Investigating the Effect of Leisure Time's Perceived Risks on Sports Tourists’ Social Happiness During COVID_ 19 Pandemic
sahar pirjamadi Ahmad Mahmoudi Vahid Saatchian Kamran RomianiThis descriptive study sought to investigate the effect of leisure time's perceived risks on the sports tourists’ social happiness during the COVID_ 19 Pandemic using the structural equation model. The study’s statistical population comprised all tourists who used sport MoreThis descriptive study sought to investigate the effect of leisure time's perceived risks on the sports tourists’ social happiness during the COVID_ 19 Pandemic using the structural equation model. The study’s statistical population comprised all tourists who used sports tourism complexes in Mashhad, out of whom 381 people were selected via purposive sampling. The required data were collected via Ishraqi et al’ (2017) perceived risks questionnaire and the oxford social happiness scale. The questionnaires’ face and content validities were confirmed by experts, and their construct validity was confirmed via exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Moreover, the questionnaires’ reliability, obtained through Cronbach's alpha, was found to be over 0.7. As for analyzing the data, descriptive and inferential statistics such as one-sample T-test and structural equation modeling were used. The study’s results indicated a significant difference between the mean perceived risk components, the tourists’ happiness, and the theoretical mean. Furthermore, a significant correlation was found between perceived risk components and the tourist's happiness during the COVID_ 19 Pandemic. Therefore, it is emphasized that factors such as supervision, planning, hardware, security, information provision, organizational matters, and internationally recognized methods be considered in setting sports tourism policies to prevent the psychological consequences of COVID_ 19 and achieve perfect social happiness. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
45 - Investigating the Relationship between Tourism and Creating a Happy City: A Case Study of Chalous and Nowshahr Cities, Mazandaran, Iran
nastaran khandan nazanin Tabrizi mohammad hasan zaalTourism can help create happiness and, therefore, provide people with the satisfaction of life. On the other hand, the presence of a "happy host" is a fundamental requirement for the successful development of tourism, making the monitoring of the tourism-induces happine MoreTourism can help create happiness and, therefore, provide people with the satisfaction of life. On the other hand, the presence of a "happy host" is a fundamental requirement for the successful development of tourism, making the monitoring of the tourism-induces happiness and satisfaction level a key factor in any such development program. In this regard, as assessing the issue in Noshahr and Chalous cities (as two main tourist destinations in northern Iran) is of particular importance, this study set out to investigate the role of tourism in constructing the indices of a happy city in Chalus and Nowshahr. The statistical population of the study comprised residents of Nowshahr and Chalous cities. Moreover, the sample size was estimated to be 380 using Cochran's formula, and the participants of the study were selected via the convenience sampling method. Finally, the data collected from the questionnaires distributed among the respondents were analyzed through structural equations and factor analysis using the SPSS and PLS software. The results revealed that tourism was effective in creating happy cities in Nowshahr and Chalous. However, according to the results of statistical tests, the extent of such influence was found to be very poor. It was also found that tourism slightly increased the welfare, happiness, social participation, and satisfaction of the residents of Nowshahr and Chalous cities. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
46 - Investigating the Factors Involved in Feasibility Studies of Tourism Development in Kermanshah Province: A Local Community Perspective
Mohammad Ali Feizpour Habib Ansari samani zahra naseriConsidering the dependence of tourism on its host community and thus the interdependence of tourists and local residents, it could be argued that the culture and viewpoints of the local people may influence tourism activities. Therefore, the local community must be acti MoreConsidering the dependence of tourism on its host community and thus the interdependence of tourists and local residents, it could be argued that the culture and viewpoints of the local people may influence tourism activities. Therefore, the local community must be actively involved in the development process to ensure the success of feasibility studies, proper assessment of investments made in tourism, and the extension of tourism projects’ lifespan. In this regard, this study sought to perform a feasibility analysis of tourism activities, focusing on running a coffee shop in a representative tourist destination in Kermanshah Province, Iran. To this end, the tourism development project during the years 2019-2023 was examined in terms of financial and economic assessments, and the evaluation of its effects from the viewpoint of the local community. The financial and economic data were collected from the Statistical Center of Iran, and the data concerning the evaluation of the project’s effects from the local community’s perspective were gathered through a questionnaire. The results of the financial and economic feasibility study indicated that setting up the coffee shop was financially and economically viable and justified. On the other hand, the evaluation of the local residents’ viewpoint in this regard revealed that tourism could contribute to economic prosperity, the introduction of the region to others, feeling the sense of pride by the local people, and the restoration and reconstruction of historical buildings. This study attempted to identify the factors involved in the feasibility study of tourism and assess the local community's viewpoint regarding the effects of tourism. The findings of the study suggested that financial and economic feasibility studies along with an evaluation of the effects of tourism could contribute to the success of investment projects. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
47 - Explaining Socio-cultural Factors Affecting Creative Tourism From the Tourists’ Perspective: A Case Study of Zayandehrood Visitors
Faezeh Mohaghegh masoud taghvaei Negin sadeghyCreative tourism is a type of emerging cultural tourism that focuses on skill development. Accordingly, cultural heritage, rituals, and handicrafts can be presented in such a way as to provide more interactions between visitors and the local population. In this regard, MoreCreative tourism is a type of emerging cultural tourism that focuses on skill development. Accordingly, cultural heritage, rituals, and handicrafts can be presented in such a way as to provide more interactions between visitors and the local population. In this regard, due to successive droughts in Isfahan city and thus the decreasing number of visiting tourists, it appears necessary to develop creative sociocultural tourism in the city, especially with regard to the Zayandehrood site. Therefore, this study sought to identify and prioritize socio-cultural factors involved in creative tourism from the perspective of the tourists who visited Zayandehrood using a descriptive-analytic and survey-based method. To this end, confirmatory factor analysis was used to analyze the collected data using the Amos software. The results indicated that among socio-cultural factors, it was the cultural ones that had the priority in creative tourism of Zayandehrood. Therefore, it could be argued that introducing the indigenous culture of the Zayandehrood area will be effective in attracting tourists even during the drought. Finally, Zayandehrood-based creative cultural tourism strategies were developed using the QSPM matrix, according to which "creating an atmosphere and organizing events based on the cultural capacities of Isfahan with an emphasis on Zayandehrood" turned out to be the prioritized strategy, with its score being 10.48. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
48 - Developing A Framework for Increasing the Foreign Tourists’ Tendency for Traveling to Iran with an Emphasis on Soft Power
Shadi Mahmoudi darani Mohammad Mehdi Rahimian Asl Mohammad Hasan Maleki Majid Nili AhmadabadiDeveloped within the past decades as a key concept in international and power relations, soft power emphasizes diplomacy, culture, art, and propaganda instead of hard and coercive aspects of power. As soft power affects the international prestige and credit of countries MoreDeveloped within the past decades as a key concept in international and power relations, soft power emphasizes diplomacy, culture, art, and propaganda instead of hard and coercive aspects of power. As soft power affects the international prestige and credit of countries, this applied exploratory study sought to elaborate on the role of soft power and its componential elements in attracting foreign tourists. The theoretical population of the study comprised fifteen experts in soft power and tourism who were selected via convenience sampling. To conduct the study, twenty-seven factors were identified by reviewing the related literature on tourism and soft power. The factors were then screened via the Binomial test, out of which seventeen factors were excluded due to their over 5% significance coefficient. The remaining ten factors were then analyzed using the cross-impact analysis (CIA) technique. The results of the study indicated that successful organization of political, artistic, scientific, sports, and literary events at the international level, the presence of foreign companies in the business environment of Iran, cyberspace and social networks, and improving tolerance among influential reference groups in society contributed the most to attracting tourists to Iran. The study was also replicated using the DEMATEL method, producing very similar results compared to the previous test, and the same four factors were identified as the most influential factors in attracting foreign tourists. It should be noted that the DEMATEL method and cross-impact analysis are based on a critical realism approach, considering the fact that they both enjoy structural analysis. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
49 - A Future Study of Business Intelligence in the Tourism Industry
nayereh abtahi Mohammad Hasan Maleki behrooz bayat tohfeh ghobadiDespite potential tourism capacities in Iran, few foreign tourists visit Iran compared to the competing countries due to the lack of infrastructure, the existence of legal barriers, and the sanctions imposed against Iran. As considerable growth in the application of inf MoreDespite potential tourism capacities in Iran, few foreign tourists visit Iran compared to the competing countries due to the lack of infrastructure, the existence of legal barriers, and the sanctions imposed against Iran. As considerable growth in the application of information technology to tourism is one of the main trends in this industry, this applied exploratory study sought to identify future scenarios of business intelligence in Iran’s tourism industry using both qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze the collected data. The population of the study comprised tourism, future study, and business intelligence experts, out of whom the intended participants were selected via judgmental sampling. The study was conducted in three phases. In the first phase, thirty effective driving forces of the prospective business intelligence in the tourism industry were identified by reviewing the related literature and interviewing the experts. In the next phase, the identified driving forces were screened and prioritized using the EDAS. To this end, the driving forces were screened via the Binominal test, twenty of which were eliminated from the analysis, accordingly. Then, the remaining ten driving forces were assessed using the EDAS method. Finally, the type of decision-making culture and the arrival of foreign tourists were selected as the final driving forces, which, together with the application of root definitions and the organization of consultation workshop, formed the basis of offering four scenarios, namely the prosperity, heterogeneity, the spider web, and the ice ages. Accordingly, the prosperity and ice age scenarios illustrate the best and worst conditions for the future of business intelligence in tourism, respectively. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
50 - Investigating the Role of Social Capital, Social Interaction, and Knowledge Sharing in E-Tourism Marketing
haydar mohammadi mosavi jad seyed mohammad yosra salehi seyede hayde nematiToday, the expansion of electronic tourism has decreased the intermediary role of travel agencies, and tourists themselves directly purchase travel packages. Therefore, travel agencies must develop new strategies to deal with this new situation and revive their business MoreToday, the expansion of electronic tourism has decreased the intermediary role of travel agencies, and tourists themselves directly purchase travel packages. Therefore, travel agencies must develop new strategies to deal with this new situation and revive their business, including the use of social capital, social interaction, and knowledge sharing in electronic tourism marketing. This study is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive survey in terms of methodology. The statistical population of the study comprised managers of travel agencies in Tehran, out of whom 110 participants were selected via non-probable quota sampling. The required data were collected through a researcher-developed questionnaire, whose content validity was confirmed by six expert professors and experts in the field of tourism and management. Moreover, the convergent and divergent validity of the questionnaire was confirmed. On the other hand, the total and composite reliability of the questionnaire was found to be over 0.7 and 0.8, respectively, which proved to be acceptable. The collected data were then analyzed under descriptive and inferential categories using the SPSS and SmartPLS software. The findings of the study indicated that social capital, social interaction, and knowledge sharing had a direct influence on e-tourism marketing. Moreover, social capital and social interaction were found to have a significant positive influence on knowledge sharing. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
51 - Conducting Tourism Component-based Content Analysis on Social Studies Textbooks of Second-grade Elementary School
Faezeh Asadian ArdakaniConsidering the fact that tourism is regarded as an essential industry that provides many opportunities for the development of communities, introducing and teaching tourism and its components by the education establishment is a crucially important strategy that can help MoreConsidering the fact that tourism is regarded as an essential industry that provides many opportunities for the development of communities, introducing and teaching tourism and its components by the education establishment is a crucially important strategy that can help develop tourism in a country. On the other hand, elementary school education forms the basis of all instructions, requiring special attention to be paid at this phase. Therefore, considering the role and significance of curriculum in teaching tourism concepts, especially the necessity for the inclusion of such concepts in textbooks, this study sought to analyze the content of the social studies textbooks taught at second-grade elementary school, taking tourism’s componential elements into account. To this end, Shannon’s entropy model was used to analyze the textbooks’ content (texts, images, tasks), designating the page as the unit of analysis. Moreover, the study's statistical population comprised of three textbooks designed to be taught at the fourth, fifth, and sixth-grade elementary school level, out of which 406 pages were selected. The results indicated that 994 items had addressed the components of tourism education. It was also found that the highest attention had been paid to "environmental protection", with its information load and coefficient correlation being 0.9849 and 0.1319, respectively. Furthermore, the lowest attention was reported to have been paid to the component of "roads and means of travel transportation," with its information load and coefficient correlation being 0.5203 and 0.0731, respectively. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
52 - Perceived Authenticity, Satisfaction, Revisiting, Cultural Heritage Tourism, Kourd House, Sanandaj
akbar pourfaraj sasan ahmadiWhile many scholars believe that tourists take the trouble to visit authentic destinations away from their place of residence, few studies have so far been conducted in this regard. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the role of perceived authenticity on touris MoreWhile many scholars believe that tourists take the trouble to visit authentic destinations away from their place of residence, few studies have so far been conducted in this regard. Therefore, this study sought to investigate the role of perceived authenticity on tourists' satisfaction and revisiting intention. To this end, perceived authenticity was divided into objective, structural, and existential categories based on the analysis of the related literature review. Moreover, the study was conducted in the Kourd House Ethnology Museum of Sanandaj. On the other hand, to collect the required data, a valid questionnaire was administered to 224 tourists who visited the place. Finally, the collected data were analyzed through SPSS20 software using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results indicated that objective, structural, and existential authenticity positively influenced tourists’ satisfaction. However, it was merely the objective and existential authenticity that exerted a positive effect on the tourists’ intention to revisit the place. Moreover, tourists’ satisfaction was also found to have a positive influence on their revisiting intention. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
53 - Investigating Agrotourism Aesthetics and Social Production of Space from Local Stakeholders’ Perspective: A Case Study of Grape Festival in Abhar City, Darsjin Village, Iran
mohamad taghi heydari Daruish jahani Ismail Dali yagoob haghiPlaying a significant role in reducing rural poverty, fostering sustainable agricultural and rural development, creating income-generating opportunities for local residents, promoting the culture of natural resource protection, and optimal use of cultural and natural at MorePlaying a significant role in reducing rural poverty, fostering sustainable agricultural and rural development, creating income-generating opportunities for local residents, promoting the culture of natural resource protection, and optimal use of cultural and natural attractions, agricultural tourism provides the basis for interaction between village residents and visiting tourists. In this regard, this study sought to examine the driving forces involved in developing agricultural tourism in Dresjin village from the local stakeholders’ perspective, focusing on the grape festival. The current research is applied in terms of type and descriptive-analytical in terms of nature. The sample size of the study comprised seventy-eight household members who were interviewed along the sidewalks leading to the festival site of Dresjin village. The required data were also collected through library and field studies. The data were then analyzed via the MICMAC approach using the worst-best preference technique. The findings of the study indicated that the positive and pleasant feeling produced by the space and the restoration and maintenance of monuments were the most significantly preferred factors involved in the social production of the space, providing the visitors of Dresjin village with a pleasant feeling and bringing about positive results for the village. Therefore, it appears that tourism development programs must be developed for the village, including clearly set missions and duties of relevant organizations. Such well-developed programs could help avoid parallel working and unnecessary duplications, and also create a sense of responsibility in the actors involved through the tasks assigned to them. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
54 - Tourism, Public Policy, Tourism Policy, Policy Implementation, Gilan Province
Ezzatollah Abbasian shabnam zarjou seyyed Hamed HashemiThe current study set out to identify the influential factors involved in implementing public tourism policies in Gilan province, Iran. To this end, this developmental qualitative research applies an inductive approach and follows the interpretive-constructivist philoso MoreThe current study set out to identify the influential factors involved in implementing public tourism policies in Gilan province, Iran. To this end, this developmental qualitative research applies an inductive approach and follows the interpretive-constructivist philosophy. The study’s population consisted of experts in the field of tourism, public policy, Gilan studies, and geography, out of whom some twenty experts were selected and interviewed using purposive snowball sampling. According to the findings of the study, technological, cultural, social, economic, and political-administrative factors were found to have contributed to the implementation of the public tourism policy in Gilan province. In this regard, the political-administrative factor was found to comprise bureaucracy reduction, education, and human resources development and improvement. Moreover, it was revealed that the social factors included strengthening social responsibility, increasing public and non-governmental organizations' participation, proper communication of the executive department with residents, and enjoying social capital. On the other hand, the results showed that the cultural factor consisted of utilizing cultural symbols, developing localized policies, and emphasizing the cultural structure of each region and that the technological factor included the emphasis on media advertisement and strengthening technological infrastructure. Finally, the economic factor was found to comprise participatory governance, proper financial planning, and proper budgeting. The main achievement of this research is its focus on the implementation aspect of policy-making and the recognition of various cultural, technological, social, economic, and political-administrative factors in the successful implementation of tourism policies, suggesting that in addition to economic factors, some other factors also contribute to the effective policy implementation, a fact which has been neglected in many similar studies. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
55 - Designing a Model for The Development of Rural Entrepreneurship Ecosystem with Emphasis on Ecotourism Resorts in Tourist Villages of Khorasan Razavi Province
Javad Sakhdari Jahangir Yadolahi farsi Malihe ShahriaryDeveloping the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem could be considered an appropriate strategy to accelerate the development of rural areas and increase job opportunities. On the other hand, applying entrepreneurship to Iran’s ecotourism and rural tourism is considered a s MoreDeveloping the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem could be considered an appropriate strategy to accelerate the development of rural areas and increase job opportunities. On the other hand, applying entrepreneurship to Iran’s ecotourism and rural tourism is considered a supplement to agricultural activities to create favorable living conditions for the villagers and resolve the challenges existing in rural development. Therefore, this study sought to present a model for developing the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem in target tourism villages of Khorasan Razavi province using a qualitative research method with an applied descriptive-survey approach. To this end, the required data were collected via semi-structured interviews made with fifteen managers and board members of eco-tourist resorts. The data were then analyzed using the Grounded Theory method. Moreover, the validity and reliability of the model were measured via the Kappa index and confirmed by two researchers in the field of tourism and a few university professors. The study’s results suggested that the development of the ecosystem requires the decision maker to consider five aspects, including strategic orientation and effective leadership, identify appropriate sites’ locations, monitor the ecosystem’s development and provide its improvement mechanisms, set the demand-side policies, supply-side policies, and twelve sub-factors. Therefore, it could be argued that the proposed model may provide valuable insights for the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in rural areas with an emphasis on ecotourism opportunities. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
56 - Developing A Structural Model for Establishing A Sustainable Consumption and Production Pattern in Tourism Industry
Faezeh MirfakhraeeSustainable consumption and production patterns (SCP) play a crucially important role in the sustainable implementation of all economic activities. Therefore, this study specifically sought to develop a structural model to assess the driving forces involved in establish MoreSustainable consumption and production patterns (SCP) play a crucially important role in the sustainable implementation of all economic activities. Therefore, this study specifically sought to develop a structural model to assess the driving forces involved in establishing a sustainable consumption and production pattern and to improve the sustainable aspects of the supply chain in tourism. To this end, first, fourteen consumption and production-related factors were selected and developed using the relevant literature and the experts’ views. Then, the collected data were analyzed using the Gray Relational Analysis, considering the fact that this model helps identify the causal relationships between the selected stimuli and assess the power of their mutual interactions. According to the study’s findings, ten influencing driving forces and four influenced ones were identified as the factors involved in establishing a sustainable consumption and production pattern in the tourism industry. Accordingly, the highly influential driving forces that readily affect other driving forces were identified as the "Government policies and regulations for developing an integrated system of sustainable consumption and production", "The managerial Support and involvement in implementing a sustainable consumption and production pattern", "Initiatives and advertising campaigns developed by various tourism enterprises for implementing a sustainable consumption and production pattern", and “Gaining market advantage and improving the overall performance in the industry". Identifying the causes and effects involved in implementing a sustainable consumption and production pattern in tourism’s supply chain, the findings of this study can help managers easily analyze relevant issues in this regard and thus enhance their overall performance by recognizing the cause and effect driving forces. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
57 - Leadership Style, Servant Leadership, Paternal Leadership, Authentic Leadership, Psychological Capital, Job Engagement, Extra-role Services
Somayeh Abedi Bagher Asgarnezhad Nouri Vali Nemati Sayed Mohammad Reza MovahedThis study sought to investigate the influence of newly-emerged leadership styles, that is, servant leadership, authentic leadership, and patriarchal leadership on the psychological capital and occupational behavior of hotel staff in the Iranian cities of Sareyn and Ard MoreThis study sought to investigate the influence of newly-emerged leadership styles, that is, servant leadership, authentic leadership, and patriarchal leadership on the psychological capital and occupational behavior of hotel staff in the Iranian cities of Sareyn and Ardabil. To this end, the population of the study comprised 312 hotel staff, out of whom 255 people were selected via convenient sampling. The required data were collected through a standard questionnaire which was administered online. The collected data were then analyzed through SPSS software and LISREL software using the structural equation method. The findings proved that all three leadership styles investigated in this study influenced the hotel staff’s psychological capital and occupational behavior. Furthermore, the staff’s occupational participation was found to be effective in the provision of extra-role services to the customers. It can thus be argued that the intended novel styles of leadership increase individuals’ psychological capital and occupational participation. Therefore, organizations, especially those involved in tourism and accommodation, should try their best to adopt such leadership styles. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
58 - Investigating the Role of Residents' Support for Health Tourism Development in Marketing Using the Cognitive Mapping Approach: A Case Study of Isfahan’s Healthcare Town
mahnaz Doosti-Irani Mir Mohammad AsadiFocusing on "the residents' support for the development of health tourism" as a variable that could be considered by marketers to increase demands for this kind of tourism, this study sought to investigate the variables affected by the residents' support and prepare a f MoreFocusing on "the residents' support for the development of health tourism" as a variable that could be considered by marketers to increase demands for this kind of tourism, this study sought to investigate the variables affected by the residents' support and prepare a fuzzy cognitive map of such factors using a systemic model. To this end, the aforementioned variables were identified using the Delphi technique. Then, the research model was developed and analyzed using fuzzy cognitive mapping. The findings of the study suggested that the residents' support affected factors such as the destination image, tourist satisfaction, tourist loyalty, positive advertisements by word of mouth, perceived quality of services, tourists' emotional solidarity with the residents, and spatial belonging of tourists to destinations. Moreover, the results of fuzzy cognitive mapping showed that in a system consisting of the above-mentioned variables, the residents' support played a significant role in tourist loyalty and positive word-of-mouth advertisement, with its impact being greater than that of satisfaction or even service quality. In other words, winning the residents' support is a priority in this regard. Moreover, residents' support affects other relevant factors, including perceived quality, tourist satisfaction, spatial belonging, and emotional attachment. Therefore, gaining the residents’ support is highly recommended to be considered in marketing health tourism. Considering the research gaps in this field, the results of the current study could be used for enriching the related literature. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
59 - Investigating the Effect of Staff Self-Leadership on Internal Branding and Role Identity in Hotel Industry: A Case Study of 5-Star Hotels in (Mashhad)
Jamshid Najari Beydokhti Omid BehboodiThe current applied descriptive-correlational study sought to investigate the effect of staff self-leadership on the outcomes of internal branding and role identity in the hotel industry. The statistical population of the study comprised all the staff of 5-star hotels i MoreThe current applied descriptive-correlational study sought to investigate the effect of staff self-leadership on the outcomes of internal branding and role identity in the hotel industry. The statistical population of the study comprised all the staff of 5-star hotels in Mashhad, out of whom 120 people were selected through the Morgan table using simple random sampling. The required data were collected via the standard Zhang and Zhou questionnaire (2021) whose face and construct validity were measured through expert approval and factor loads, respectively. Moreover, the reliability of the questionnaire was measured and confirmed using the Cronbach's alpha test. Finally, the collected data was analyzed via structural equation modeling. The findings of the study indicated the significant positive effect of self-leadership on brand knowledge, brand commitment, and brand citizenship behavior through factors such as the visualization of successful performance, self-goal-setting, self-talk, and self-aggrandizement. Furthermore, self-leadership factors also influence brand knowledge, brand commitment, and brand citizenship behavior through role identity. It could, therefore, be concluded that promoting self-leadership behaviors helps the internal growth of an organization’s brand and facilitates internal branding through role identity. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
60 - Investigating the Effect of Socio-Subjective Norms-induced Cognitive Risk Perception on Tourists' Behavioral Intentions During Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Shiraz City, Iran
Yazdan Shirmohammadi Jafar Ahangaran Amin GhanbariThis survey study sought to investigate the effect of cognitive risk perception induced by the subjective norms attitude on tourists' behavioral intentions during the Covid-19 pandemic using structural equation modeling. The statistical population of the study comprised MoreThis survey study sought to investigate the effect of cognitive risk perception induced by the subjective norms attitude on tourists' behavioral intentions during the Covid-19 pandemic using structural equation modeling. The statistical population of the study comprised all tourists who visited the cultural and historical sites of Shiraz City, Iran, out of whom 384 people were selected through convenient sampling using the Cochran formula with a 95% confidence level. To collect the required data, a researcher-developed questionnaire on the “effect of tourists' perception on their target destinations during the Covid-19 pandemic” was administered to the participants. The collected data were then analyzed using Amos software and SPSS software. On the other hand, the reliability and validity of the questionnaire were measured via Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Accordingly, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, composite reliability, and Average Variance Extracted values were reported as over 0.7, 0.7, and 0.5, thus confirming the reliability and validity of the questionnaire. Finally, the structural equation model was used to test the research hypotheses and the relationships between research variables (cognitive risk, behavioral intentions, and subjective norms). The findings of the study suggested that cognitive risk perception positively affected tourists' behavioral intentions through their subjective norms and attitude. Moreover, attitude was recognized as a significant mediator between risk perception and behavioral intentions, while subjective norms mediated the relationship between cognitive perception and behavioral intentions. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
61 - Freedom, authenticity, intimacy and charm: Representation of travel influencers’ photos in Instagram
hoda davari hamed bakhshiCreated on a social network basis, Instagram pages effectively contribute to shaping our mental perception regarding various topics. On the other hand, those Instagram pages dedicated to travel have highly been welcomed by viewers in recent years. Actually, the represen MoreCreated on a social network basis, Instagram pages effectively contribute to shaping our mental perception regarding various topics. On the other hand, those Instagram pages dedicated to travel have highly been welcomed by viewers in recent years. Actually, the representations made by the relevant influences concerning the travel process, travel destination, and travel meaning construct some explicit and implicit meanings. Therefore, this study sought to identify the semantic system governing the popular Instagram pages of travel influencers. The conceptual framework of the study is based on John Fisk's semiotic approach and his social reality codes, including social reality, representational reality, and ideological reality. Social reality codes address physical characteristics such as speech, environment, and clothing. Moreover, representational reality codes deal with the sender's creative power, including framing, colors, companionship and substitution, and characterization. Finally, ideological reality codes examine the concept that gives coherence to such categories. The findings of the study indicated that naturalism, intimacy, liberation in social relations and individual lifestyle, availability and ease of travel, charm-seeking, desire for freedom, travel as a lifestyle, and responsible travel are the pivotal values represented by travel influencers at the level of ideological codes, representing such a special type of tourism that seeks changes in daily routines, acquisition of new experiences, the quest for authenticity, and returning to the true self. This travel style represents a conscious or non-conscious effort against the homogenization of the modern world and a kind of resistance against daily routines, rationalization, and social order. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
62 - A Formal and Contentual Review of Pilgrimage and Religious Tourism Studies in Iran (2003-2021)
Neda Razavizadeh somaye varshoeHaving a long-standing tradition in the Iranian and Shiite communities, pilgrimage and religious travels have considerably increased throughout the last two decades with a boom in tourism. In this regard, many studies have been carried out on different aspects of pilgri MoreHaving a long-standing tradition in the Iranian and Shiite communities, pilgrimage and religious travels have considerably increased throughout the last two decades with a boom in tourism. In this regard, many studies have been carried out on different aspects of pilgrimage, addressing both managerial aspects of the pilgrimage destinations and the experiences reported by the pilgrims. However, while several review articles have already been published in English-language journals on pilgrimage studies, no such article could be found in the Iranian -Persian academic journals concerning pilgrimage and religious trips made in Iran. Therefore, this article sought to examine the formal and contentual features of the Persian scientific-research papers on pilgrimage and religious tourism published in Iranian Journals, trying to identify the research gaps in this regard. To this end, the relevant articles published from 2003 to 2021 in Iranian journals accredited by Iran’s Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology using a systematic review and content analysis method. Then, the features of the collected papers were examined in terms of spatial distribution, frequency, geographical distribution, authors’ characteristics (gender, frequency, and field of study), and methodology (research method, data sources, data collection tools, observation unit, sampling method, and statistical tests). Finally, the papers were categorized in terms of their relationship with the Parsons’ social systems, introducing the over-researched and under-researched areas and the research gaps in the Iranian pilgrimage and religious tourism studies so that new ideas and research topics be offered for novel studies and the development of knowledge in this regard. Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
63 - Developing A Trust-based Organizational Health Model for the Iranian Aviation Industry
Gholam Hosein Torabian Badi Iraj Soltani Hamid Davazdah EmamiOrganizations are considered living entities whose character and identities, either healthy or unhealthy, are quite independent of their members. In this regard, it could be argued that a healthy organization can act efficiently to attract the citizens’ satisfaction, th MoreOrganizations are considered living entities whose character and identities, either healthy or unhealthy, are quite independent of their members. In this regard, it could be argued that a healthy organization can act efficiently to attract the citizens’ satisfaction, thus developing social trust. On the other hand, the Aviation Industry consists of companies and organizations, playing a pivotal role in the economic, social, cultural, technological, and developmental programs in both developed and developing countries. Therefore, the organizational health of this industry can increase the citizens’ social trust. Accordingly, this applied-developmental qualitative study sought to present a model of social trust-based organizational health to be used in Iran’s Aviation Industry using a grounded theory method. The required data were collected via semi-structured interviews made with twenty experts. The collected data were then analyzed using the NVivo software, according to which 218 open and 32 axial codes were extracted through open coding. The findings of the study suggested that factors related to service quality, customers (the passengers), the Aviation Industry, and staff and managers (human resources) were among the causal conditions. Furthermore, the background conditions involved in the organizational health of the Aviation industry were the status of the managers, staff, airports, aviation fleet, and the industry. Moreover, the intervening conditions identified in this regard included political, economic, technological, social, and legal factors. On the other hand, the study found that strategies such as promoting strategic thinking, improving communications, increasing technological utilization, and improving organizational structure could help enhance the organizational health of the Aviation Industry. Finally, the outcomes of such an enhancement could affect customers (passengers), the Aviation Industry, the staff, and the managers (human resources). Manuscript profile -
Open Access Article
64 - Identifying the Factors Involved in Applying IoT to Smartening Tourism Destinations Using Future Studies Approach: A Case Study of Fars Province
Khadije Kaveh maryam nekooeezadeh Moslem AlimohammadloFars province is one of the main hubs of tourism centers in Iran. Therefore, paying special attention to tourism in the province and using Internet-of-things technology in its tourism management can provide suitable facilities for improving the welfare of its visiting t MoreFars province is one of the main hubs of tourism centers in Iran. Therefore, paying special attention to tourism in the province and using Internet-of-things technology in its tourism management can provide suitable facilities for improving the welfare of its visiting tourists, thus increasing the visiting rate of its tourist destinations. In this regard, the present study sought to predict and identify the most important factors involved in applying the Internet of Things technology to the Smartization of tourist destinations in Fars province and to develop feasible desirable future scenarios thereof. To this end, the required data for this applied study were collected by conducting interviews, administering questionnaires, and carrying out a systematic review of related literature. Finally, the collected data were analyzed by the Scenario Wizard software using the MICMAC method. The results of the MICMAC analysis revealed the main role of 14 key variables in the application of the Internet of Things technology to the Smartization of tourist destinations in Fars province. On the other hand, two strong scenarios, 1548 weak scenarios, and nine scenarios with high compatibility were obtained using the Scenario Wizard software. Accordingly, the study used the aforementioned nine high-compatibility scenarios, finding that the future of tourism in Fars province would be similar to the current circumstances. It was also found that the trend of changes in the status of tourism would be slow and that the chances of applying the Internet of Things technology to the province’s tourism destinations would be low. Finally, based on the obtained scenarios, the study proposed some strategies to achieve the desired results in smart tourism. Therefore, the results of the current study could help tourism professionals prepare the ground for the application of state-of-the-art technologies such as the Internet of Things to tourism and thus develop the field through setting long-term plans. Manuscript profile