An Evaluation of tourism stalkholder relationships: a case study of Agra, India.

Abstract

This is an inductive research project which critically evaluates the application of stakeholder theory to the analysis of tourism destination networks. It explores the dynamics of the relationships between the tourism organisations involved using the case of Agra, India. Cities and towns become tourist destinations because of the activities of a large number of organisations to provide attractions, accommodation, and accessibility. Understanding the relationships between these organisations can explain how tourism developed and is currently managed, which will in turn help not only existing and potential tourism businesses but also destination management organisations to act more effectively. This research examines the relationships of power and dependency that exist between individual and group organisations and the way in which they motivate their behaviour towards each other in a tourism industry. The review of the literature identifies the key attributes of stakeholder power in these relationships to be resource and network bases of power. However, tourism stakeholders join social networks and power can be limited by ethical constraints, either embodied in laws and regulations, or in mutually accepted codes of behaviour. These sources of influence are termed legitimacy. This research also demonstrates that urgency is an important attribute and this is examined because it is instrumental in making these relationships dynamic. Qualitative interviews were conducted with tourism stakeholders (both commercial and non-commercial) in Agra, India to identify and analyse the perceptions, attitudes and experiences of their relationships with others within their network. Consequently, these relational-attributes were further sub-classified to aid a better understanding. An analytical framework is developed to facilitate understanding and evaluate the implications of stakeholder relationships within a tourism destination scenario. Consequently, it was found that urgency is the most important attribute of all with respect to making a decision or carrying out an act.