Assessment the Relationship between Rural Sustainability and Tourism Development by Modifier Role of Local People Perception

Local people always play a very important role in rural tourism development decisions. So that it is always known as one of the principles of sustainable tourism development. Therefore, local perception towards rural tourism development help tourism managers and policy makers to make better decisions. So, the current study aims to assess the relationship between rural sustainability and rural tourism development by modifier role of local people perception. The statistical population is Local people in Qalat region of Shiraz. According to Morgan table, 385 were selected by available sampling method. Data were collected using a questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was measured using Cronbach's Alpha and composite reliability. Its validity was measured using convergent and divergent validity. To examine hypothesis, the Partial Least Squares and Structural Equation Modeling were used. The results showed that without considering local perception as a modifier role, there is a positive relationship between general sustainability and rural tourism development in Qalat region, confirming all relationships between sustainability aspects and rural tourism development. However, considering modifier role, from the economic points of view, local people have not had positive opinions about rural tourism development. The positive economic aspects of economic have not been significant among local people and negative environmental impacts of Qalat area have increased with the arrival of the tourist.