1- Velayat University
2- Razi University
2- Razi University
Abstract: (8 Views)
Introduction and Objective: The tourism industry is currently considered as the engine of development of various economies around the world, and agritourism, as one of the new areas of this industry, has become a sustainable and green economic growth trend. Agritourism is a method for developing sustainable and multifunctional tourism in rural areas, through which the visitor has the opportunity to get acquainted with agricultural areas and businesses, local products, traditional foods, and the daily lives of rural people as cultural elements and traditions (Shah et al., 2019). The role of this industry in creating employment, income generation, entrepreneurship, and economic development, and the existence of the country's abundant capabilities in the two areas of tourism and agriculture (Morovat et al., 2018), as well as the high unemployment rate and the unstable economic situation, make attention to these strategic areas more prominent than ever. Given that entrepreneurial ecosystems, as a multidimensional set of interacting factors that moderate the impact of economic activities on economic growth (Bruns et al., 2017) and, in the form of a complex social structure (Neumeye et al., 2019), lead to the creation of value and its fair distribution in the ecosystem (Audretsch et al., 2019), have received less attention at the village level (Polbitsyn, 2019), the necessity of designing a model for the development of such ecosystems in the agricultural tourism industry is obvious. Therefore, the present study seeks to design and formulate a model for the development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism.
Material and Methods: The present study is classified as an applied study in terms of purpose, qualitative in terms of approach, and documentary in terms of data collection method; because the required data was collected through a systematic review and analysis of scientific documents, including articles published in reputable databases. The research method is meta-synthesis and based on the seven-step model of Sandelowski and Barroso (2007). The documentary community included all domestic and international scientific studies published in the field of entrepreneurship and agritourism ecosystem. The selection of studies was carried out by purposive sampling and based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. After screening the studies, 50 studies were selected, and then by analyzing the content of the findings of the selected studies and using the coding method and expert opinion, 66 codes, 15 concepts, and 7 categories were identified. In order to measure the reliability of the extracted codes, the percentage of intra-subject agreement was calculated.
Results: The development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism requires simultaneous and coordinated attention to several key components. These components were categorized into "Human Capital" including the concepts of Human Resource Empowerment, Training Social Interaction and Complementary Skills; "Market and Demand" including the concepts of Advertising and Branding, Market Development and Studying Tourist Demands; "Infrastructure and Resources" including the concepts of Physical Tourism Infrastructure, Natural and Regional Potentials; "Policies and Institutions" including the concepts of Government Support, Institution Building, Formulating Rules and Regulations; "Social Capital and Interactions" including the concepts of Internal Participation and Cooperation, External Networking; "Innovation and Learning" including the concepts of Scientific and Knowledge Innovation, Technological and Infrastructure Innovation; and "culture" including the concepts of Strengthening the General Culture of Entrepreneurship and Developing Local Community Attitude. They interact systematically with each other and form the foundation of a sustainable ecosystem.
Conclusion: The results of the research in the form of a model for the developing the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism show that the formation and development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism is the result of the dynamic interaction and synergy of a set of structural, institutional, and behavioral factors that are explained in the form of seven main dimensions including culture, human capital, market and demand, infrastructure and resources, policies and institutions, social capital and interactions, and innovation and learning. In this framework, culture, as the software platform of the ecosystem, by strengthening positive attitudes and entrepreneurial values in the local community, provides the basis for the acceptance and sustainability of entrepreneurial activities; while capable and trained human capital acts as a key factor in converting opportunities into sustainable businesses. At the same time, the existence of a dynamic market and effective demand, through mechanisms such as branding and targeted marketing, enables the commercialization of tourism products and services. On the other hand, infrastructure and resources, as objective prerequisites for development, provide the physical and environmental context necessary for exploiting tourism capacities, and policies and institutions, by playing a regulatory and supportive role, provide favorable conditions for ecosystem growth by formulating rules, providing incentives, and facilitating processes. Also, social capital and network interactions, by strengthening cooperation, trust, and knowledge exchange, increase efficiency and intra-system cohesion. Finally, innovation and learning, as the driving force of the ecosystem, by continuously improving knowledge, technology, and creativity, provide the basis for competitive advantage and long-term sustainability of entrepreneurship in this field. Accordingly, it can be concluded that the efficiency of the agritourism entrepreneurial ecosystem does not depend on the individual performance of each of these dimensions, but on the quality of interaction, balance, and cohesion between them; in such a way that any weakness or disruption in one of the components can disrupt the entire system. Therefore, adopting a comprehensive, integrated, and systemic approach to policymaking and development planning is a fundamental condition for the realization and sustainability of entrepreneurship in this field. Therefore, policymakers, researchers, and activists in this field should view the development of human, institutional, infrastructural, marketing, cultural, social, and innovation capacities as complementary and interconnected dimensions. It is also necessary to have coordination between the macro-level policymaking, regional planning, and local implementation in order to promote agritourism as an economic, cultural, and environmental opportunity with a long-term and sustainable perspective.
Material and Methods: The present study is classified as an applied study in terms of purpose, qualitative in terms of approach, and documentary in terms of data collection method; because the required data was collected through a systematic review and analysis of scientific documents, including articles published in reputable databases. The research method is meta-synthesis and based on the seven-step model of Sandelowski and Barroso (2007). The documentary community included all domestic and international scientific studies published in the field of entrepreneurship and agritourism ecosystem. The selection of studies was carried out by purposive sampling and based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. After screening the studies, 50 studies were selected, and then by analyzing the content of the findings of the selected studies and using the coding method and expert opinion, 66 codes, 15 concepts, and 7 categories were identified. In order to measure the reliability of the extracted codes, the percentage of intra-subject agreement was calculated.
Results: The development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism requires simultaneous and coordinated attention to several key components. These components were categorized into "Human Capital" including the concepts of Human Resource Empowerment, Training Social Interaction and Complementary Skills; "Market and Demand" including the concepts of Advertising and Branding, Market Development and Studying Tourist Demands; "Infrastructure and Resources" including the concepts of Physical Tourism Infrastructure, Natural and Regional Potentials; "Policies and Institutions" including the concepts of Government Support, Institution Building, Formulating Rules and Regulations; "Social Capital and Interactions" including the concepts of Internal Participation and Cooperation, External Networking; "Innovation and Learning" including the concepts of Scientific and Knowledge Innovation, Technological and Infrastructure Innovation; and "culture" including the concepts of Strengthening the General Culture of Entrepreneurship and Developing Local Community Attitude. They interact systematically with each other and form the foundation of a sustainable ecosystem.
Conclusion: The results of the research in the form of a model for the developing the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism show that the formation and development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the field of agricultural tourism is the result of the dynamic interaction and synergy of a set of structural, institutional, and behavioral factors that are explained in the form of seven main dimensions including culture, human capital, market and demand, infrastructure and resources, policies and institutions, social capital and interactions, and innovation and learning. In this framework, culture, as the software platform of the ecosystem, by strengthening positive attitudes and entrepreneurial values in the local community, provides the basis for the acceptance and sustainability of entrepreneurial activities; while capable and trained human capital acts as a key factor in converting opportunities into sustainable businesses. At the same time, the existence of a dynamic market and effective demand, through mechanisms such as branding and targeted marketing, enables the commercialization of tourism products and services. On the other hand, infrastructure and resources, as objective prerequisites for development, provide the physical and environmental context necessary for exploiting tourism capacities, and policies and institutions, by playing a regulatory and supportive role, provide favorable conditions for ecosystem growth by formulating rules, providing incentives, and facilitating processes. Also, social capital and network interactions, by strengthening cooperation, trust, and knowledge exchange, increase efficiency and intra-system cohesion. Finally, innovation and learning, as the driving force of the ecosystem, by continuously improving knowledge, technology, and creativity, provide the basis for competitive advantage and long-term sustainability of entrepreneurship in this field. Accordingly, it can be concluded that the efficiency of the agritourism entrepreneurial ecosystem does not depend on the individual performance of each of these dimensions, but on the quality of interaction, balance, and cohesion between them; in such a way that any weakness or disruption in one of the components can disrupt the entire system. Therefore, adopting a comprehensive, integrated, and systemic approach to policymaking and development planning is a fundamental condition for the realization and sustainability of entrepreneurship in this field. Therefore, policymakers, researchers, and activists in this field should view the development of human, institutional, infrastructural, marketing, cultural, social, and innovation capacities as complementary and interconnected dimensions. It is also necessary to have coordination between the macro-level policymaking, regional planning, and local implementation in order to promote agritourism as an economic, cultural, and environmental opportunity with a long-term and sustainable perspective.
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