Negative Security Impact of Informal Tourist Residencies in Hamedan: A Research with the Methodology of Q

The global experience over the past decades has shown that the development of tourism in geographical spaces, including urban areas, has always led to various forms and degrees of negative and positive outcomes in the security, economic, socio-cultural and environmental dimensions. The present study focuses on the identification and analysis of negative security effects caused by the activities of informal tourist residencies in Hamedan. The basis of research methodology is based on Q methodology as a hybrid or mixed method. The Q method is a complete methodology package that involves qualitative study stages and a quantitative study. The present research is also considered to be a type of applied research in terms of purpose. 64 people were selected from the discourse space through targeted sampling to participate in the research. Based on the findings of the study of discourse space in the qualitative stage, the negative effects of the activities of informal residences including 16 propositions were identified. In the quantitative stage, cluster analysis and diagnostic analysis methods were used to discover the existing mental patterns about the negative security effects and, accordingly, five distinct mental patterns were identified. In short, the first view is about covering up crime and social anomalies; the second view is about rule escaping and the destruction of the image or face of the destination of tourism; the third view is about the weakening of the security of guest and host communities, the fourth view is about the threat of economic security of tourism destination, and the fifth view is about the weakening of social control and police control.