Different voices from community groups to support sustainable tourism development at Iranian World Heritage Sites: evidence from Bisotun

Abstract

This empirical study investigates the causal factors affecting support for sustainable tourism development (SSTD) at a world heritage site in Bisotun, a city in Kermanshah Province, Iran. It uses social exchange theory to assess the effects of community attachment, community involvement, perceived benefits, and perceived costs on SSTD. Using social identity theory, it identifies whether these associations significantly vary across four different community groups: farmers, businesses, handicraft sellers, and local government employees. A questionnaire was administered to 489 respondents from these four community groups in the Bisotun area. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling and invariance metric tests. The results revealed that community attachment, community involvement, and perceived benefits had a significant and positive impact on SSTD. The results of the metric invariance tests show that the effects of community attachment and community involvement on SSTD varied across the community groups at this world heritage site located in a developing country. The study discusses the theoretical and managerial implications of these findings.

Keywords:

• World heritage site
• community
• sustainable development
• Bisotun
• Iran

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Hossein G. T. Olya

Hossein Olya is a Senior Lecturer of Consumer Psychology at Sheffield University Management School, Sheffield, UK. He is one of the pioneers in the application of complexity theory and Qualitative Comparative Analysis to tourism and hospitality research. He is the methodology editor of the Service Industries Journal.

Habib Alipour

Habib Alipour is a Professor of Tourism Policy and Planning at the Eastern Mediterranean University, Faculty of Tourism in Famagusta, North Cyprus. He completed his MS degree in urban and regional planning and his PhD degree in urban studies, with a focus on policy analysis. His research interests include sustainable development, tourism planning, institutional analysis, and environmental impact assessment.

Yaqub Gavilyan

Yaqub Gavilyan is a graduate of Eastern Mediterranean University in Tourism Management. His areas of interest include the heritage management and sustainable development. His work has been published in the Journal of Travel Research.