Dysfunctional Institutional Structure and Tourism in Mountainous Area (Case: Mountainous Area of Rezvanshahr)

Technological changes and enhanced human abilities in exploiting of mountainous areas, and the need for economic diversification of human settlements located in mountainous areas has led to the expansion of rural tourism (in combination with natural tourism) which can complement and encourage productive activities and provide the basis for achieving sustainable development. The present study has been conducted with the aim of investigating and analyzing the impact of the dysfunctional institutional structure on the development and consequences of tourism in the mountainous rural areas of Rezvanshahr. This research is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of method. The statistical population consists of mountainous tourist villages (14 villages) in Rezvanshahr district. The results showed that due to the dominance of the dysfunctional institutional structure, the expansion of tourism has led to the unbalanced development of mountainous settlements. While this activity has led to population re-attraction in mountainous villages but due to the dominance of the dysfunctional Institutional structure, it seems that the space lacks any kind of management, proper organization and it is without supervision. In other words, the dysfunctional institutional structure hinders the development of tourism via maximizing individual benefits and it led to the expansion of tourism in mountain villages for personal gain and to the detriment of the nation. While the mountains of Iran are a common natural heritage of all Iranians and this shared heritage and valuable intergenerational wealth must be obsessively managed and protected as much as possible. The effects and consequences of irrational and destructive exploitation of mountainous areas will not only be limited to the mountains but also it will expose the whole society to irreversible social, economic and political damages.