The analysis of the sense of security of locals in the touristic villages of Neyshabur County

The sense of security in rural areas is associated with many factors, including the presence of foreigners and strangers from outside the village. As rural security is one of the most important factors in expanding tourism in rural areas, sometimes tourism in a village plays a significant role in improved sense of security of local people. Therefore, villages as a biological location that includes a dense population of diverse individuals and unique attractions will be able to perform their special functions only if the residents have an acceptable level of sense of security. For this reason, in this study, we tried to measure the sense of security among the villagers living in rural tourism destinations. Neyshabur County attracts many tourists thanks to its geographical and historical situation, as well as proximity to main roads. In addition, as the villages in this county are situated on the slope of the mountains, they are surrounded by numerous springs, waterfalls, and other natural attractions which attract many local and non-local tourists, which can serve as an important source of increased income for the villagers. Nevertheless, one of the important factors in development of tourism in the villages is the satisfaction of the villagers with the presence of tourists and the sense of security of the local people. Therefore, this research analyzes and evaluates the sense of security of local people in tourism villages.

Security in tourism destinations is one of the main factors of tourism development. Security is one of the fundamental principles in the development of tourism strategy, because the long-term sustainability of tourism industry depends on provision of security, and the disruption of its mechanism makes way for insecurity of that tourism destination. Security and tourism are the parameters of an equation which are directly co-related. Today, security is the most important and fundamental principle in formulating the tourism development strategies. There is a mutual relationship between tourism, stability, development and security. Thus, tourism and security are interdependent and they mutually interact with each other, as they can have a decreasing or increasing effect on each other. Following are some studies on the subject of research: (Heydarnejad et al, 2015: Investigating the role of security feeling in the development of border tourism (case study: Chabahar border town)), (Golshiri Esfahani et al, 2013: Spatial Analysis of Health Tourists Security in the Rural Areas of Iran), (Karami Dehkordi et al, 2013: Identification and Prioritization of Security Obstacles in Rural Tourism Development by using Delphi Technique (Research Area: Chehar-Mahal & Bakhtiary)), (Hezar Jaribi, 2011: Feeling Social Security from the Viewpoint of Tourism Expansion), (Khosravi, 2009: Security is the most important component in attracting tourists), (Choon Chiang, 2000: Strategies for Safety and Security in Tourism: A conceptual framework for the Singapore Hotel Industry), (Ghaderia et al, 2017: Does security matter in tourism demand?), (Prashyanusorn et al, 2010: Surveillance system for sustainable tourism with safety and privacy protection) & (Fan et al, 2013: AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) and Computer Analysis Software Used in Tourism Safety).

This study was an applied one conducted in a descriptive-analytical method. Five security dimensions (human life, cultural, social, economic and environmental incentives) have been used to measure the sense of security among the locals in tourism villages. The data were collected using a questionnaire containing questions about security dimensions. In total, 39 items were designed and questioned in 5 dimensions. The statistical sample of this study consists of 10 tourism villages in Fazl and Mazol rural districts of Neyshabur County which in 2016 had a population of 2417 households. Therefore, according to Cochran formula and with a 0.1% error rate for households in sample villages, the sample size was 95, after some modifications it was raised to 117.

The results of the t-test indicate that the local community has a low sense of security. Besides, according to the results of the independent two sample t-test, women feel more secure than men. However, it's worth noting that men feel less secure than women because they are much more in contact with the tourists than women do. According to the results of the factor analysis for the items of ‘dealing with intruders’, ‘the sense of security while leaving the house unguarded during the day’ and ‘the tourists following the ethical standards’ had the highest factor loads. This reveals that villagers in rural tourism destinations believe that the above items have the highest impact on the security of the area. The results of spatial analysis of the differences in the sense of security in sample villages showed that the village of Bojabad with the score of 0.371 and the village of Ghar with the score of 0.291 respectively have demonstrated the highest and lowest levels of the sense of security, as these villages have numerous attractions which attract tourists from different cultures and tastes and usually favor the youth.

In general, the presence of tourists in the rural tourism destinations of the region has led to decreased level of the sense of security among local people. Accordingly, local people feel that crimes have increased in villages due to the presence of tourists. Therefore, as the presence of tourists makes villagers feel less secure, the following suggestions are made to improve tourism security in the region: - To make promotional programs for development of tourism culture - To develop and improve security services - To encourage the family tourism - To establish NGOs in the region