Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Assistant Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, Mohaghegh Ardabili University, Ardabil, Iran

Abstract

Tourism is one of the flexible and dynamic industries that has different dimensions and types. Green tourism is one of the most important types that many countries pay special attention to today. One of the dimensions that can be fruitful in the direction of green tourism is the field of environmental policy-making. This scientific and executive field, which aligns with environmental protection measures and activities, can create favourable consequences for communities. This study's main purpose is to formulate the environmental policy-making desired pattern in the context of green tourism, which uses a mixed-method to investigate the issue. The approach used in this method is a partially mixed sequential dominant status design approach that is done in three phases: qualitative-qualitative-quantitative. In this research, three methods of "focus group-grounded theory-survey" have been used to formulate and confirm the model, respectively. The main tool used in the qualitative phase is the interview. In the quantitative phase, a questionnaire was extracted relevant information and data from 13 experts in the qualitative phase and 8. According to the research findings, about 17 main indicators were identified, which were considered the pattern's main components. According to the results of the quantitative section, among the studied indicators, the index "Communications and interactions of responsible institutions" has the highest score among the indicators, which shows the importance of this category in the resulting pattern. From the present study results, we can point to the important role of "communications and interactive of responsible institutions", which requires the development of more precise environmental policies to support green tourism to achieve other goals, sustainable tourism development.
Introduction
In recent times, tourism and travel have been considered flexible, dynamic and growing industries. Many studies show that the tourism industry contributes significantly to the economic growth and development of tourism-led economies. On the other hand, many thinkers believe that tourism achieves economic growth and development at the cost of pollution and environmental degradation. Numerous factors have led to a more precise policy for the tourism industry with the aim of sustainable tourism development. Therefore, the development of a desirable pattern that is considered at both conceptual levels of "environmental policies" and "green tourism" can consider a wide range of measures to improve and develop green tourism. While supporting and creating green tourism, this pattern will make it possible to create various pollution control projects and schemes with the help of environmental policies. For this purpose, it is necessary to design a desirable pattern to get out of the issues to be effective in this regard. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to develop a pattern of environmental policy-making in the context of green tourism.
Materials and Methods
The general design of the methodology in this research is applied according to the purpose, its mixed method. For further explanation, the research design is a partially mixed sequential dominant status design that is done in three phases qualitative-qualitative-quantitative. In this design, first qualitative and then quantitative data are collected and analyzed. Priority is usually given to the qualitative phase, and quantitative data reinforces the qualitative data. In this research, three "focus group-grounded theory-survey" methods have been used. In the qualitative part, the thematic axes were first extracted using the focus group method. Then, in the next step, using tools such as semi-structured interviews, the relevant codes were obtained, and the codes were transformed into a pattern by the grounded theory method. Then the resulting pattern was examined by experts, and to assess its components, its validity was announced.
In summary, the thematic axes extracted from the focus group method were used as a criterion for orientation. The focus of the interviews was based on the grounded theory method. Then, through the steps of the grounded theory method, the desired pattern was extracted and calculated. After formulating the pattern, in the third phase - the quantitative phase of the research - the components and categories of the pattern are examined by experts; for evaluating its components, its validity is announced.
Discussion and Results
In the first phase, i.e. the focus group method that was done online, items such as Macro "socio-cultural, political, economic and environmental" environment; institutional arrangements of relationships and interactions; inter-organizational coordination structures; interest groups and influential in formulating and implementing tourism policies; New and Innovative Solutions in Creating Green Tourism; Symmetry of Green Tourism and Environmental Executive Projects; Interactive Policy Making in Green Tourism "were extracted as thematic axes. In the second phase - in the grounded theory method of the foundation - the approach of Strauss and Corbin was used that the propositions were counted in three types of coding "open, axial and selective".
Conclusions
Green tourism operators face various factors in maintaining green tourism assets in the future. To manage these factors, planners, policy-makers and tourism managers must prescribe and adopt sustainable green policies and strategies, improve the quality and quantity of relevant policies, and consider the principles and practices of sustainable development to improve green tourism. These results require the development of more precise policies for the tourism industry, which should be given special attention to sustainable tourism development and support for green tourism. In the following, the relevant suggestions are presented

Keywords

حسینی، مریم. (1394). معرفی روش گروه کانونی و کاربرد آن در تحقیقات. تهران: انتشارات و اطلاع رسانی مرکز پژوهش و سنجش افکار.
رمضانیان، محمد رحیم؛ حیدرنیای کهن، پدرام. (1389). عوامل مؤثر بر مدیریت زنجیرۀ تأمین سبز در صنعت گردشگری مورد مطالعه: آژانس‏های مسافرتی شهر تهران. مطالعات مدیریت گردشگری. دوره 5، شماره 14 ، زمستان 1389، صفحه 125-151.
صالحی،  صادق؛ فیضی زنگیر،  سلمان؛ قلی پور، یاسر. (1399). تحلیلی بر تصویر و رفتار سازگار با محیط ‌زیست  در مقاصد طبیعت‌-پایه (مطالعه‌ی موردی: شهرستان ماسال). مطالعات مدیریت گردشگری. دوره 15، شماره 52، زمستان 1399، صفحه 51-79.
وثوقی، لیلا؛ شمسی ماربینی، نرگس. (1395). ارزیابی عوامل مؤثر بر موفقیت اقامتگاه‌های سبز. مطالعات مدیریت گردشگری. دوره 10، شماره 32، زمستان 1394، صفحه 87-67.
یاوری‌گهر، فاطمه؛ حیاتی، خلیل. (1399). نوآوری پایدار در صنعت مهمان نوازی: بررسی نقش اشاعه نوآوری، فشارهای محیطی، بازاریابی سبز و تعهد منابع. مطالعات مدیریت گردشگری. دوره 15، شماره 52، زمستان 1399، صفحه 27-50. 10.22054/TMS.2020.49649.2262
Aldous, D. E. (2013). EFFECTS OF GREEN TOURISM ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT. Acta Horticulturae, (999), 171–178. doi:10.17660/actahortic.2013.999.23.
- Archer, B., & Copper, C. (1994). The positive and negative impacts of tourism. In W. Theobold (Ed.), Global tourism: The next decade (pp. 69–91). London: Butterworth Heinemann.
 Azam, Muhammad; Alam, Md Mahmudul & Hafeez, Muhammad Haroon. (2018). Effect of tourism on environmental pollution: Further evidence from Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Journal of Cleaner Production. Volume 190, 20 July 2018, Pages 330-338.
Azam, M & Sarker, T. (2011). GREEN TOURISM IN THE CONTEXT OF CLIMATE CHANGE TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE SOUTH ASIAN REGION. Journal of Environmental Management and Tourism. Volume II Issue 1(3) Summer 2011.
 Baker, P. R. (1986). Natural area destinations: The Moroccan experience. Tourism Management, 7, 129–131.
 Barbour, R. (2008). Doing focus groups. Sage.
 Birkland, Thomas A. (2019). An introduction to the policy process: theories, concepts, and models of public policy making. 5th edition. New York, NY : Routledge, 2019.
Chan, Ying Tung.(2020). Are macroeconomic policies better in curbing air pollution than environmental policies? A DSGE approach with carbon-dependent fiscal and monetary policies. Energy Policy. 141 (2020) 111454.
 Charmaz, K., 2000. Grounded Theory: Objectivist and Constructivist Methods. 2nd ed. Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 509–536.
 Chen, Luyi; Zhou, Rong; Chang, Yue & Zhou, Yuan. (2020). Does green industrial policy promote the sustainable growth of polluting firms? Evidences from China. Science of The Total Environment. Volume 764, 10 April 2021, 142927.
 Corbin, J., Strauss, A., (2014). Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. 4th ed. SAGE Publications.
 Creswell, J. W. (2018). Research design: Qualitative and mixed methods approaches. SAGE Publications, Inc; 5th edition (January 2, 2018).
 Croyle, S. L.; Belage, E.; Khosa, D. K.; LeBlanc, S. J.; Haley, D. B.; and Kelton, D. F. (2019). Dairy farmers' expectations and receptivity regarding animal welfare advice: A focus group study. Journal of Dairy Science. Volume 102, Issue 8, August 2019, Pages 7385-7397.
 Cocklin, Chris & Moon,Katie. (2020). Environmental Policy. This article is a revision of the previous edition article by C. Cocklin, volume 3, pp 540–545, 2009 Elsevier Lt.
 Czyżewski, Bazyli; Trojanek, Radosław; Dzikuć, Maciej & Czyżewski, Andrzej. (2020). Cost-effectiveness of the common agricultural policy and environmental policy in country districts: Spatial spillovers of pollution, bio-uniformity and green schemes in Poland. Science of the Total Environment. 726 (2020) 138254.
 Dobbins S, Hubbard E, Flentje A, Rose CD, Leutwyler H. (2018). Play provides social connection for older adults with serious mental illness: a grounded theory analysis of a 10-week exergame intervention. Aging Mental Health 2018;24:596–603.
 Driml, S., & Common, M. (1996). Ecological economics criteria for sustainable tourism: Application to the Great Barrier Reef and Wet Tropics World Heritage Areas, Australia. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 4, 3–16.
 Galeotti, Marzio; Salini, Silvia & Verdolini, Elena. (2020). Measuring environmental policy stringency: Approaches, validity, and impact on environmental innovation and energy efficiency. Energy Policy. 136 (2020) 111052.
 Goulden, Shula; Negev, Maya; Reicher, Shay & Berman, Tamar. (2019). Implications of standards in setting environmental policy. Environmental Science and Policy. 98 (2019) 39–46.
Farrell, B., & Twining-Ward, L. (2005). Seven steps towards sustainability: Tourism in the context of new knowledge. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 13, 109–122.
 Hall, M. C. (2010). Tourism and biodiversity: More significant than climate change? [Special Issue]. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 5, 253–266.
 Herman, Kyle S. & Shenk, Justin. (2021). Pattern Discovery for climate and environmental policy indicators. Environmental Science & Policy. Volume 120, June 2021, Pages 89-98.
 Hosseini, Maryam. (2015). Introducing the focus group method and its application in research. Tehran: Publications and Information Center of Research and Thought Assessment. [In Persian].
Hou, Shuhua; Xu, Jiuping & Yao, Liming. (2020). Integrated environmental policy instruments driven river water pollution management decision system. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences. Volume 75, June 2021, 100977.
 Kelly, J. Andrew; Clinch, J. Peter; Kelleher, L & Shahab, S. (2020). Enabling a just transition: A composite indicator for assessing home-heating energy-poverty risk and the impact of environmental policy measures. Energy Policy. 146 (2020) 111791.
 Koskima, Vesa; Rapeli, Lauri & Hiedanpaa, Juha. (2021). Governing through strategies: How does Finland sustain a future-oriented environmental policy for the long term?. Futures. 125 (2021) 102667.
 Lu, Chun-Wei; Huang, Jui-Chan; Chen, Chen; Shuc, Ming-Hung; Hsu, Chih-Wei; Bapu, B.R.Tapas. (2021). An energy-efficient smart city for sustainable green tourism industry. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments. Volume 47, October 2021, 101494.
  Moore , T , McKee , K & McLoughlin , P J 2015 , 'Online focus groups and qualitative research in the social sciences : their merits and limitations in a study of housing and youth', People, Place and Policy , vol. 9 , no. 1 , pp. 17-28 . https://doi.org/10.3351/ppp.0009.0001.0002.
 Nguyen, Canh Phuc & Su, Thanh Dinh. (2021). Tourism, institutional quality, and environmental sustainability. Sustainable Production and Consumption. Volume 28, October 2021, Pages 786-801.
 Pryce H, Hall A, Shaw R, Culhane B, Swift S, Straus J, et al. (2018). Patient preferences in tinnitus outcomes and treatments: a qualitative study. Int J Audiol 2018; 57 (10):784–90.
 Ramanian, Mohammad Rahim & Heydarnia kohan, Pedram. (2011). Factors affecting green supply chain management in tourism industry, Investigation of Tehran's Tour & Travel Agencies. Tourism Management Studies. Volume 5, Number 14, Winter 2011, pp. 125-151. [In Persian].
 Salehi, Sadegh; Feizi, Salman & Gholipour, Yaser. (2021). Analyzing Factors Influencing Image and Environmentally-Friendly tourists Behavior in Nature-Based Destinations (Case Study: Masal City). Tourism Management Studies. Volume 15, Number 52, Winter 2021, pp. 51-79. [In Persian].
 Sparkman, Gregg; Lee, Nathan R & Macdonald, Bobbie N.J. (2020). Discounting Environmental Policy:The Effects of Psychological Distance Over Time and Space. Journal of Environmental Psychology. Volume 73, February 2021, 101529.
Stephenson, Lucy A; Gergel, Tania; Ruck Keene, Alex; Rifkin, Larry; Owen, Gareth. (2020). The PACT advance decision-making template: preparing for Mental Health Act reforms with co-production, focus groups and consultation. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry. Volume 71, July–August 2020, 101563.
 Thomas, I., (2011). Environmental Management: Processes and Practices for Australia. The Federation Press, Sydney. World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987. Our Common Future. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
 Tuokuu, Francis Xavier Dery; Idemudia, Uwafiokun; S. Gruber, James & Kayira, Jean. (2019). Linking stakeholder perspectives for environmental policy development and implementation in Ghana's gold mining sector: Insights from a Q-methodology study. Environmental Science & Policy. Volume 97, July 2019, Pages 106-115.
 Vosoughi, Leila; Shamsi Marbini, Narges. (2015). Evaluating the factors affecting the success of green residences. Tourism Management Studies. Volume 10, Number 32, Winter 2015, pp. 87-67. [In Persian].
 Votsi, Nefta-Eleftheria P.; Mazaris, Antonios D.; Kallimanis, Athanasios S. & Pantis, John D. (2014). Natural quiet: An additional feature reflecting green tourism development in conservation areas of Greece. Tourism Management Perspectives. 1 (2014). 10-17.
Wilkinson, Sue. (2014). Focus group methodology: A review. June 2014 International Journal of Social Research Methodology. 1(3):181-203.
Yavari Ghohar, Fatemeh; Hayati, Khalil (2020). Sustainable Innovation in the Hospitality Industry: Investigating the Role of diffusion of Innovation, Environmental Pressures, Green Marketing and Resource Commitment. Tourism Management Studies. Volume 15, Number 52, Winter 2020, pp. 27-50. 10.22054 / TMS.2020.49649.2262. [In Persian].
 Zau, Jiaxing; Kang Jian; Ma, Hui & Wang, Chao. (2020). Grounded theory-based subjective evaluation of traditional Chinese performance buildings. Applied Acoustics. Volume 168, November 2020, 107417.
Zhang, Jiekuan. (2021). Impacts of the emissions policies on tourism: An important but neglected aspect of sustainable tourism. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management. Volume 47, June 2021, Pages 453-461.
 Zhang, Wei; Zhang, Mingyang; Zhang, Wenyao; Zhou, Qian; Zhang, Xinxin. (2020). What influences the effectiveness of green logistics policies? A grounded theory analysis. Science of The Total Environment. Volume 714, 20 April 2020, 136731.