The Impact of Eco-tourism Culture in Conservation of National Parks (Case Study: Lar National Park)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of eco-tourism culture on conservation of Lar National Park. The research method was descriptive-survey and the data were collected by field survey. The statistical population of this study was all the researchers (ecotourists) of Lar National Park in 2017. Due to the limited statistical population (more than 100 thousand people), the statistical sample of the study was 384 tourists based on statistical tables (Krejci & Morgan) using an available sampling method. After distributing and collecting data and separating incomplete and confused questionnaires, statistical analysis was performed on 345 questionnaires. The data gathering tool was a researcher-made questionnaire which its face and content validity were confirmed by 11 professors of tourism and environmental sciences. The structural validity of the questionnaire was examined by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The reliability of the questionnaire through Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the ecotourist culture’s questionnaire and national park protection’s questionnaire were obtained (α = 0.89) and (α = 0.90) respectively. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, mean, standard deviation, and inferential statistics of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were used and the research model was analyzed using SPSS and LISREL software. This project indicated that the variables of responsibility, social behavior, normalization, education, knowledge and awareness, and religious and traditional values are affecting environmental behaviors. As a general result, it can be said that culture is the determinant for tourist’s behavior in national parks and the environmental behavior of individuals in a community originated from this key factor.