Effects of behavioral intention and dynamic capabilities on circular economy adoption and performance of tourism SMEs

Abstract

The present study in the context of circular tourism assesses the determinants of intention and behavior of 256 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Our analysis shows that attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control of decision-makers positively affect SMEs’ intention to adopt the circular economy (CE). Furthermore, SMEs’ intention, perceived behavioral control, and dynamic capabilities positively, whereas barriers negatively, affect SMEs’ behavior toward CE. The present study explicates that tourism SMEs though have positive intentions toward CE, yet most of them seem to be failing in adopting CE. This intention-behavior gap is occurring due to various contextual factors. Our analysis reveals that if dynamic capabilities are employed by tourism SMEs, then they might succeed in adopting CE, which would consequently improve not only their financial and environmental performance but also their reputation and relationship with stakeholders. The present study suggests some measures for circular tourism.

Keywords:

• Barriers
• circular economy
• dynamic capabilities
• PLS-SEM
• sustainable tourism
• theory of planned behavior

Acknowledgment

We thank the COSME programme of the European Union for funding the TOURISME project. We also thank the project partners for facilitating the present study and the respondents for their participation in the survey.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

CRediT author statement

Owais Khan: Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal Analysis, Data Curation, Writing - Original Draft, Project Administration

Nicola Bellini: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing - Review & Editing

Tiberio Daddi: Conceptualization, Resources, Writing - Review & Editing, Project Administration

Fabio Iraldo: Writing - Review & Editing, Funding Acquisition

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Owais Khan

Owais Khan is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Management in Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. He was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institute of Management in Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies. He has a joint Ph.D. in Sustainability Management and Environmental Sciences and Technology. His research interests include, but are not limited to, circular economy, dynamic capabilities, organizational behavior, tourism management, waste management, industrial symbiosis, life cycle assessment (LCA), etc.

Nicola Bellini

Nicola Bellini is a Professor at the Institute of Management in Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies. He has served as an expert for the European Commission, as a director of the Regional Institute for Economic Planning, and as a director of the La Rochelle Tourism Management Institute. His research interests include, but are not limited to, regional economy, territorial marketing, tourism management, etc. He has authored numerous books and scientific publications on tourism management.

Tiberio Daddi

Tiberio Daddi is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Management in Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies. He has a Ph.D. in Economics and Management. His research interests include, but are not limited to, circular economy, eco-innovation, sustainability management, corporate environmental management, sports management, etc. He has been serving as a consultant to many national and international organizations, coordinating various international research projects, and has authored numerous scientific publications.

Fabio Iraldo

Fabio Iraldo is a Professor at the Institute of Management in Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies. He has been serving as an expert and consultant to many national and international organizations. His research interests include, but are not limited to, corporate environmental management, environmental economics, life-cycle management, sustainable marketing, green public procurement, public policies for sustainable development, etc. He has authored numerous books and scientific publications on various topics.