درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Purpose- The aim of this study was to investigate the role of tourism development in the promotion of social welfare in rural East Azerbaijan province. Design/methodology/approach- The research paper is based on analytical-explanatory technique; it was carried out through a survey. The research population comprises the residents of the tourist villages. Five hundred (500) participants were selected as the sample size based on Cochran formula. Experts confirmed the face validity of the questionnaire. They performed a pilot study on 60 questionnaires within the same region. The applied questionnaire was 0.885 to 0.894 reliable based on the obtained data using Cronbach alpha. Finding- Spearman’s correlation test revealed that all research variables were positively and significantly related to tourism except sense of safety and security as well as improvement of consumption patterns. In addition, results of Mann-Whitney test showed that tourism and social welfare were more associated with tourist villages of East Azerbaijan than that of other non-tourist villages. In addition, the results of regression analysis revealed that 9 variables out of 11 obtained 89% of the variations. Accordingly, the variables of quality of life, occupation, and future expectancy have been more effective. Research limitations/implications- The recommendations in this research paper can be used in different areas of tourism management and development of villages in this region.

Purpose- The present study has two major purposes; the first of which is the identification of the key propellants in the essence of the brand of target tourism villages of Saman County in Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari Province, and the second purpose is prioritizing of the effective key propellants in the essence of the brand of target tourism villages of Saman County in Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari Province. Design/methodology/approach- This study is an applied one, and data are collected using a descriptive-survey method. To collect data, three types of questionnaires have been used for three groups of the local community, visitors, and experts. According to Morgan table, the sample size of the visitors and the local community are 384 samples, and 365 examples, respectively, and the sample size of the experts, with Delphi technique, was 25. To analyze the samples, one-sample T-test and Mann-Whitney U-Test using SPSS software and structural analysis (paired squares) using MICMAC software were used. Findings: The results of this research showed that the most effective key propellants in the essence of the brand of target tourism villages of Saman County in priority order are, 1. gardens, 2. water-based tourism, 3. place attachment, 4. plants and animals species, 5. the opportunity for relaxing, 6. beautiful landscapes, 7. rural accommodations. Research Limitations/Implications: The high cost of the research and the required time to fill out the questionnaires, with regard to the extent of the study area, were among the main challenges facing the present study. Originality/Value: The present study is looking for a model and method for making a sustainable brand that not only give identity to the local community but also it is attractive to tourists and fulfills experts’ views. So, the present model has the mentioned features.

Purpose- The aim of this study was to investigate the mental image of local residents of tourism destination villages in Karaj city regarding the economic and social effects of tourism and its effect on tourism development tendency. Design/methodology/approach- This research is based on an applied and descriptive-analytical method. Data related to any of the variables have been collected through questionnaires and interviews. The statistical population of the study is the residents of the villages of tourism destination in Karaj city. Out of this, 365 local residents of the villages were selected according to Cochran formula as the sample population. To analyze the research findings, AMOS and SPSS software were used. Findings- The results of this study showed that the mental image of the local residents of the tourism destination villages in Karaj is positive about the economic and social effects of tourism development. Also, the satisfaction of local residents from economic dimensions of tourism with a factor of 0.77 compared to their social mental image with a factor of 0.70 has a greater impact on the local community's desire for tourism development. Research limitations/implications- The difficulty of crossing the mountainous slopes of Chalous Road, the unwillingness of some respondents in the studied villages for individual and social reasons, the lack of sufficient statistics and information about the province of Alborz due to the newly established and non-differentiated statistics from the Tehran province are among the limitations of the research. Practical implications- Neglecting local communities in tourism industry activities is a major bottleneck in participatory planning in order to achieve sustainable development of tourism. In this regard, planners and custodians of tourism in the studied villages should develop sustainable tourism to meet the needs and desires of local residents, while the development of sustainable tourism will be impossible without the participation of local residents and their loyalty toward tourists. In this way, the maximum satisfaction of the local community is realized as an indispensable necessity for the successful development of tourism. Originality/value- In this research, we tried to provide a comprehensive and systemic approach which is a geographical attitude to evaluate the tendency of local residents of target tourism villages of Karaj County about tourism effects. In addition, the effect of this attitude was examined on local community satisfaction using structural equation modeling.

Purpose - Rural production cooperatives (RPCs) play an important role in sustainable development in rural areas by considering three principles: domination, possession, and agency in the agriculture sector. The purposes of this study are to measure the stability of RPCs and presenting effective strategies to achieve it from the managers’ view point. Design/methodology/approach - The present study is a mixed-research method using analytic-descriptive method, including two different questionnaires. One questionnaire aiming at prioritizing and measuring the stability of the RPCs was prepared and presented to the members of RPCs. Stability was measured with 24 indices in three economic, social, and environmental dimensions using Shannon Entropy technique, according which the cooperatives were prioritized. The other questionnaire was prepared to present the best approach to achieve sustainable development from the view point of the managing directors and the board of directors. The best strategy was adopted using SWOT and ANP analysis. Findings - Regarding the sustainable development, the findings of the study indicated that among rural production cooperatives in Isfahan, 12 cooperatives were unstable, 8 cooperatives were semi-stable, and 8 cooperatives were stable; this type of farming system is semi-stable. Developmental strategy (SO) was adopted as the best strategy to achieve sustainability, and the focus was on endogenous development through reinforcing internal strengths to obtain external opportunities. It includes promoting self-reliance through increasing members’ participation in cooperative, empowering the staff and members (i.e. the experienced managing director and the staff with required specialty and expert holding promotional classes), using multilevel, multi-sectorial, multi-cluster, collaborative, and holistic approaches to manage the RPCs, and promoting systems based on collaborative team work. Practical Implications - In rural sustainable development planning, sustainable farming systems must be considered as the focal core of any development plan. Since a big part of farming system in rural areas is devoted to smallholdings, promoting cooperation culture by the rural development planners can prepare the ground for empowering the villagers to obtain sustainable development. Originally/value: For the first time in Iran, the current research attempted to present functional strategies for RPCs development using a mixed-method design.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sustainable rural quality of life index in Iran during the period of 1991-2016 and to measure the effects of various government investments on this index. Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected from the Statistics Center, the Central Bank and the World Bank. The value of the quality of life indicator was calculated using the software Eviews during the course of the study. The effect of independent research variables including government investment in agriculture, education, health, and rural development using the ARDL model in Microfit software is estimated. Finding: The results of the model estimation in the short run indicate that every 1 percent increase in government investment in agricultural sectors was 0.55 percent, health and treatment 0.54 percent, education 31.3 percent, increase the quality of life respectively. But investment in rural development does not affect quality of life in the short term but investment in rural life does not affect in the short term. In the long run, every 1% increase in investment in agricultural sectors is 0.65%, health and treatment 0.64%, education 45.0% and 32% in rural development in improving quality of life and its sustainability respectively. Research limitations/implications: Access to statistics is very difficult and has been obtained through reviewing all budget rules for the research courses. Practical implications: Strategy for employment to villagers with the support of public policy, based on qualify for investment, jobs, and services in rural areas contributes to the strengthening of agriculture, the changes in agricultural production and natural resources, the creation of jobs in non-farm income and as a result, the increased demand for local agricultural and non-agricultural products. Originality/value: Considering sustainable factors in evaluating quality of life and the effect of government investment in rural life by the applied method are the advantages of this study that has not been studied in previous studies.

Purpose- Housing has been one of the basic needs of the human beings, and the settlements have also been considered as the basic needs in terms of human communities. In order to satisfy such needs appropriately, traditionally human beings have intended to supply such needs as dealing with their surrounding environment. The current research intends to define the indices of housing sustainability in order to investigate the sustainability of environment for rural housing in Marivan County. Design/methodology/approach - The required data was collected using documentary methods and field studies together with questionnaires. First, the environmental variables of sustainable housing for rural areas were defined. Next, using hierarchical sampling method together with Cochran formula, 295 rural households were selected as the sample of the study. The tool for collecting the data was a questionnaire with an acceptable reliability endorsed using pre-test, data analysis, and the calculation of Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Finally, in order to analyze the data, fuzzy interference system (FIS) was used within the MATLAB software. For mixing the results obtained from measuring the elements of environmental sustainability, the gamma fuzzy was used together with FIS. Findings - The results indicated that the environmental sustainability of rural housing in the current research included the values of 0.9, 0.7, and 0.5 for gamma fuzzy which respectively included 0.09, 0.22, and 0.52. This indicates that the environmental sustainability of rural housing is not desirable for the areas investigated in this study. Research limitations/implications - The most important problem with the current research was that the household heads in the rural areas could not be easily accessed for data collection. Practical implications - With respect to the results, it is recommended that the economic, cultural, and social conditions of the rural areas and the subsistence of their native residents should be in line with the climatic and geographical conditions of the areas. Originality/value - The results of the current research can pave the way for studying the sustainability of the rural housing, especially in the area which has been studied.