نشریه مطالعات اجتماعی گردشگری
سال دوازدهم شماره 2 (پیاپی 26، تابستان 1403)

To support tourism development, it is necessary to consider the factors that help increase the appeal of tourist destinations, trying to portray a positive image of the destinations in the tourists’ minds. Therefore, this applied study sought to examine the factors involved in increasing the appeal of tourist destinations in Poldokhtar County, Lorestan province, Iran, using a descriptive-analytic approach. The required data were collected through the administration of the researcher-developed questionnaire. The population of the study comprised fifty tourism experts and specialists who were selected through purposive sampling. Moreover, regression and binary logistics models (LM-Newton-Marcard-Rafson) were used to find answers to the research questions.The results of the study indicated that the diversity of job opportunities created by tourism products, cultural authenticity/natural assets, and tourism infrastructure were the most important factors involved in increasing the appeal of tourist attractions in Poldokhtar County. On the micro-structure level, the results suggested that the diversity of income-generating opportunities created by the development of tourism products, promotion of indigenous-local arts and handicrafts, the establishment of conference halls/ resorts to satisfy tourists, preservation of cultural/ historical and ancient attractions of Poldokhtar county, the development and improvement of tourism transport infrastructure, and the promotion and preservation of indigenous-local traditions were the most important indicators which could help increase the appeal of tourist attractions in Poldokhtar.

As an emerging concept in tourism studies, “Contemporary Arts Tourism” is currently discussed within the framework of Cultural Tourism studies. The growing status of Arts Tourism in developed countries indicates the significance of art in a sustainable development process. The case also holds true for Iran. In this regard, the current status of the “Culture and Arts” and “Tourism” economy heralds a promising future as an alternative to the present economy that is based on oil and natural resources, considering the fact that the cultural capital required for such a development already exists. Therefore, this study sought to identify the challenges and requirements of developing contemporary art tourism in Iran using the grounded theory approach. To this end, the required data were collected through specialized interviews with twenty-seven participants, including art experts, tourism professionals, and relevant government employees. The collected data were then analyzed using three stages of coding, including open, axial, and selective coding. According to the study’s results, the government, the tourism sector, and the art society were identified as the main actors (stakeholders) in developing contemporary art tourism in Iran. However, as the concerted performance of such actors is crucially important for the realization of the goals of such a development, redefining the actors’ roles and revising their duties are the main requirements of such a development. Furthermore, factors such as training, flexibility, improvement of the artistic creation’s infrastructure, development of the tourism industry’s requirements, and correction of Iran's image in the international arena seem to be of great importance.

While enjoying great tourism potential, Tehran has failed to attract tourists in proportion to such potential, making it necessary to identify, enhance, and introduce the potential. In this regard, as developing tourism and improving Tehran’s tourism competitiveness count as the main prerequisite for putting such potentials into practice, this applied study sought to identify the key factors involved in the tourism competitiveness of Tehran using the mixed method approach. To this end, the study identified, with the help of 15 experts in the relevant field, the most important factors involved in Tehran’s tourism competitiveness based on the indicators defined by the World Economic Forum using the Delphi technique. Then, a cross-impact questionnaire was applied to identify the main driving forces that influence the future of tourism in Tehran and its competitiveness. Finally, the collected data were analyzed using the MICMAC software.According to the study’s results, out of the 35 examined factors, 12 factors were selected as the key factors affecting Tehran’s tourism competitiveness which are as follows: developing state-backed prioritization of travel and tourism, enjoying international openness, revising prevailing laws and regulations to enhance tourism, improving the status of human resources and tourism labor market, making better use of cultural and natural resources, fostering communications with the world media, publicizing Tehran’s tourism attractions, branding Tehran in terms of tourism potentials, and introducing Tehran’s tourism potentials.
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In today’s world, taking advantage of social capacities and national capabilities in manufacturing handicrafts requires the application of new state-of-the-arts production techniques. In this regard, social manufacturing is an emerging phenomenon that serves as a new production ecosystem equipped with modern technologies and social networks. Therefore, this qualitative study sought to identify the requirements and challenges of applying social manufacturing to the production of handicrafts using the Grounded theory (Glaser method). To collect the required data, semi-structured interviews were made with twelve experts in the field of handicrafts and information technology who were selected through the purposive sampling method. The collected data were then analyzed using the MaxQda 10 software. On the other hand, the validity, transferability, reliability, and verifiability of the study were also measured to strengthen the findings. Finally, the collected data were analyzed through actual and theoretical coding.According to the study’s results, altering the manufacturing structure, fostering relationships with consumers, developing research and education, developing the infrastructures, and establishing production networks were identified as the main requirements of applying social manufacturing to the production of handicrafts. Moreover, the conceptual map of the study was drawn, including nine categories and twenty-nine sub-categories. The current study can fill a number of gaps existing in the application of social manufacturing in Iran.

As the goals outlined in the Iranian Strategic Tourism Development Policy Document cannot be realized without attracting financial resources, this study sought to design a model for effective strategic factors in attracting investors to the tourism industry in Ardabil province using the mixed-method approach. The population of the study at the qualitative phase comprised managers and officials of the Directorate General for Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism of the province, potential and real professionals and investors in tourism, and university experts with at least five years of experience in tourism management, investment, and marketing. The sample size of the study was selected through purposive sampling. To collect the required data, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants of the study until theoretical saturation was achieved in the twenty-fifth interview. The collected data were then analyzed via systematic grounded theory using open, axial, and selective coding. Accordingly, fifty-four concepts, eighteen sub-categories, and seven main categories were found after the integration and classification of concepts. Based on the proposed model of the study, the investors’ tendency to invest in tourism, tourism environment, and investment attraction management, the quality of tourism infrastructure, social factors prevailing over the region, supportive measures, and strengthening the position of tourism were identified as the core category, causal conditions, contextual conditions, intervening conditions, strategy, and the result of the implementation of strategies, respectively. In the quantitative phase, a questionnaire was developed by the researchers based on the identified components. Then, the questionnaire was administered to 220 investors and experts in the field of tourism. The collected data were then analyzed through the Smart PLS Software using structural equation modeling. Finally, the validity and correlation among the model’s variables were reconfirmed.

This applied study sought to investigate the ideological bases and theoretical attitudes of tourists of modern tourists towards the environment and their behavior in this regard using a descriptive-analytical approach. The unit of analysis is the tourists who visited the Kharghan and Western Kalateh districts in Bastam district, Shahrood County. Due to the lack of accurate information on the number of tourists visiting the study area, the current study used Cochran's formula (applied in cases of unknown communities) to determine the sample size of the study. Accordingly, 140 tourists were selected, to whom a relevant questionnaire was administered. The results of the study indicated that the aesthetic-mental attitude of the tourists towards nature (with an average of 4.78) exerted the greatest influence on their behavior towards the environment, suggesting that most of the tourists do not seek economic benefits in visiting tourist areas. In other words, the tourists do not follow a utilitarian attitude in visiting nature. Moreover, the results revealed that the attitudes of professional tourists (those who are actively engaged in tourism) towards nature differ from those of non-professional tourists. According to the results of the t-test performed on two independent samples, women and men possess different ideological attitudes towards nature, making them behave differently towards the natural environment. Furthermore, a positive direct correlation was found between age and the ideological attitudes of tourists towards nature, indicating that the attitude towards nature changes with an increase in age, which in turn affects the behavior of tourists towards the environment.