Investigating the role of tourism in improving social capital indicators of rural settlements (villages of tourism destination of Paveh County)

Rural tourism is one of the most important forms of tourism, especially in developing countries and It should be considered as a potentially important tool for economic and social development. Therefore, tourism can be effective in developing some indicators. Social capital indicators are a clear sample of this subject. The purpose of this study is to examine the role of tourism in improving the social capital indicators of rural settlements. The research method is descriptive-analytical and based on field studies using a questionnaire tool. The research method is descriptive-analytical and based on field studies using a questionnaire tool. The sample size of 384 people was calculated and questionable at the level of three villages of tourism destination of Paveh County (villages of Hajij, Khanqah and Shamshir). The results showed that tourism has contributed to the improvement of social capital and Indicators are at a significant level below 0.05. The average of total indicators (3.68) indicates the extent of this effect. The only indicator of formation of associations and support institutions with an average of 2.55, has taken a very small role in tourism. Anova's test showed that there is a difference between villages in terms of social capital indicators according to the role of tourism. The largest difference is in the village of Swords with an average of 3.60. The average index of people's tend to enter the tourist is equal to 3.89, which reflects the positive attitude of the people towards tourists.