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Understanding the entrepreneurs’ behavioural intentions towards sustainable tourism: a case study from Greece

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Abstract

This study’s aim is mainly to provide insights into the factors that affect sustainable tourism entrepreneurs’ behavioural intentions, employing data from Greece. Given that intention is a powerful predictor of actual behaviour, to stimulate sustainable entrepreneurial activity in the tourism sector and achieve sustainable development, it is important to study the factors that affect entrepreneur’s behavioural intentions towards sustainability. Findings through this empirical analysis support that entrepreneur’s demographics parameters and firm characteristics have distinctive effects in explaining respondents’ behaviour towards sustainable entrepreneurship and acknowledgement of sustainability options of a community. In particular, results suggest that younger entrepreneurs are probably more informed about the potential of the sustainability for the regions and are more likely to favour sustainable tourism practices. Entrepreneur’s income is also a statistical significant parameter towards sustainable entrepreneurship intentions within the tourism sector. Finally, entrepreneurs reported as important for the promotion of tourism sustainability the creation of knowledge networks and websites to focus on sustainable business and the promotion of environmental labels and certified management systems in tourism businesses.

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Notes

  1. Available at: http://sdt.unwto.org/sites/all/files/docpdf/climate2008.pdf.

  2. Available at: http://sdt.unwto.org/sites/all/files/docpdf/fromdavostocopenhagenbeyondunwtopaper.

  3. Available at: http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/unwto_highlights14_en.pdf.

  4. Available at: http://sete.gr/EN/Home/.

  5. Available at: http://www.un.org/esa/agenda21/natlinfo/wssd/greece.pdf.

  6. Available at: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/Agenda21.pdf.

  7. Available at: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/rio20.

  8. Available at: http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics/sustainabletourism.

  9. Available at: http: http://sdt.unwto.org/content/about-us-5.

  10. Available at: http://www.e-unwto.org/doi/pdf/10.18111/9789284414741.

  11. The Theory of Planned Behaviour is an extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action (for more details see: Fishbein and Ajzen 1975).

  12. The estimates refer to the year 2013.

  13. The following definition is followed: “entrepreneur is someone who exercises initiative by organizing a venture to take benefit of an opportunity and, as the decision maker, decides what, how, and how much of a good or service will be produced. The entrepreneur is usually a sole proprietor, a partner, or the one who owns the majority of shares in an incorporated venture” (available at: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/entrepreneur.html#ixzz3LUPPv0Kb).

  14. More precisely, the formulation of the question was: “Do you intend to adopt sustainable practices in your firm? Sustainable practices are defined those associated with all the pillars of sustainable development (economic, social-cultural and environmental)” (Dichotonomous choice answer: Yes or No).

  15. Intention is a positive attitude to do something, whereas willingness suggests a desire to do.

  16. Please note that as presented elsewhere, Braun (2010) concluded that women had stronger environmental attitudes and commitment to the green entrepreneurship program than males. The author(s) believe that the results are not comparable since the stated research question in our case is different, focusing on intention to adopt sustainable business practices.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Editor and the three anonymous reviewers for their insightful and constructive comments from which the present paper greatly improved. Any remaining errors or deficiencies are solely the authors’ responsibility.

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  1. Department of Home Economics and Ecology, School of Environment, Geography and Applied Economics, Harokopio University, 70 El. Venizelou Av., 17671, Kallithea, Greece

    E. Sardianou, I. Kostakis, R. Mitoula, V. Gkaragkani, E. Lalioti & E. Theodoropoulou

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  1. E. Sardianou
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  2. I. Kostakis
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  3. R. Mitoula
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  4. V. Gkaragkani
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Correspondence to E. Sardianou.

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Sardianou, E., Kostakis, I., Mitoula, R. et al. Understanding the entrepreneurs’ behavioural intentions towards sustainable tourism: a case study from Greece. Environ Dev Sustain 18, 857–879 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-015-9681-7

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