Designing a Model for Sustaining Tourism Development Businesses with a Data-Driven and Quantitative Approach

Abstract

The present study aimed to design a model for sustaining tourism development businesses using a grounded-data and quantitative approach in order to identify the key factors influencing the continuity and sustainability of tourism businesses in Iran, Turkey, and Oman. This study was conducted based on an inductive–deductive paradigm using an exploratory mixed-methods design. In the qualitative phase, meta-synthesis and the DEMATEL technique were employed to identify and analyze the causal relationships among factors affecting the sustainability of tourism development businesses. The qualitative population included scientific articles, theses, and valid research documents published between 2008 and 2024. Additionally, 10 to 15 tourism and business experts participated in the DEMATEL phase. In the quantitative phase, the statistical population consisted of managers, entrepreneurs, and decision-makers in tourism development businesses across Iran, Turkey, and Oman, selected through multi-stage cluster random sampling. Data were analyzed using SPSS, Smart-PLS, and structural equation modeling techniques. The validity and reliability of the instruments were confirmed using Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, AVE, and the Fornell–Larcker criterion. The meta-synthesis findings revealed that the factors influencing the sustainability of tourism businesses were categorized into six major dimensions, including physical infrastructure, marketing factors, socio-cultural and perceptual factors, governance and management, technology and innovation, and sustainability and social responsibility. The DEMATEL results indicated that “place identity and memory-making” had the highest centrality value (5.7400), making it the most influential and central factor within the network of relationships, while “environmental sustainability” with a causal value of 0.1312 was identified as the strongest driving factor. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that all factor loadings exceeded 0.50 and all t-values were greater than 1.96, confirming the adequacy of the measurement model. Comparative analysis across Iran, Oman, and Turkey showed that all components, including pricing, marketing, cultural attractions, psychological security, host community participation, smartization, environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, and social responsibility, had significance levels below 0.01, indicating their statistically significant effects on the sustainability of tourism businesses. The findings demonstrated that sustaining tourism development businesses requires an integrated combination of cultural, technological, managerial, economic, and social factors. Among these, security enhancement, strengthening place identity, promoting cultural attractions, improving service quality, and implementing smart technologies play critical roles in increasing tourist loyalty and ensuring business continuity. Furthermore, environmental sustainability and social responsibility were identified as key drivers capable of fostering sustainable development and long-term competitiveness in tourism destinations. These findings provide practical implications for policymakers, tourism managers, and stakeholders in designing sustainable tourism development strategies.