A Structural Equation Modeling of the Role of Mosques in the Development of Religious Tourism (Case Study: Atigh Jameh Mosque of Shiraz)

Popular places of pilgrimage and worship have always been center of attraction for domestic and foreign religious travelers. AtighJameh Mosque, in terms of topography, has a central and pivotal role in historic cultural structure of Shiraz. This mosque is the oldest mosque built in Fars, and a variety of arts such as woodcarving, inlay, plaster, and mogharnas have been used to add to its religious and architectural-historical values. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of AtighJameh Mosque of Shiraz in terms of its architecture, liturgical and non-liturgical functions, in the development of religious tourism. According to the research objectives and the components studied, it is a practical study and it is done based on an analytical-descriptive method. Data was collected through questionnaires and surveying of documents. The sample size was 145 tourists calculated based on the sample of Cochran in 95 percent assurance level. LISREL (path analysis) has been used for data analysis and Pralong model was employed to check the touristic value of mosque. The main problem studied in this research was the lack of awareness about the elements and architectural functions of liturgical and non-liturgical functions in AtiqhJameh mosque in the development of religious tourism. The results show that architecture of AtighJameh Mosque with an amount of 0, 841 had the greatest role in attracting religious tourists. Also modelling of structural equivalences shows that there is an established mutual and bi-directional relationship between architectural components of Atigh Mosque in Shiraz and its liturgical and non- liturgical functions, but the weight of each component is different. The results of the standardized coefficients approves the effects of architectural components of AtighJameh Mosque on the development of religious tourism with a direct and positive coefficient of 0. 93, and the effects of liturgical functions with a direct and positive coefficient of 0. 85, and its as non-liturgical functions with a direct and positive coefficient of 0. 64.