Examining the relationship between social capital and the tourism boom in the Caspian Sea coastal areas

Programs related to recreation and tourism is considered economic, social and cultural phenomena. Some experts conceive tourism as a driving force for the economic development of countries. In this regard, adopting appropriate solutions to increase feelings of trust and security within tourists visiting a region is crucial in attracting tourists. The present research is descriptive-correlation type and offers a model capturing the relationship between social capital and the tourist boom in the Caspian Sea coastal areas. The statistical population of the research involves all the native inhabitants of the Caspian Sea and the tourists who visited the place, out of whom 229 were randomly selected for the sample. Collecting the data a researcher-made questionnaire was employed. In the data analysis phase, structural equations modeling technique was used for investigating the relationship between social capital and attraction of tourists. Findings confirm the proposed conceptual model depicting that social capital directly affects the attraction of tourists, and has a prominent impact on the subjective and objective security of tourists.