The popularity of ecotourism activities has produced myriads of definitions. Among academics and industry stakeholders alike, confusion results from the diversity of ecotourism definitions. The purpose of this research is to solve to this confusion by presenting a set of criteria by which ecotourism can be better defined.
A thematic content analysis has been applied in order to extract a set of common themes from the definitional literature. The following steps were followed: collection of definitional samples, analysis of identified criteria, creation of a conceptual framework, test of coding on a sample of definitions, refinement of coding rules and analysis of framework, coding of definitions, recording of results in the conceptual framework, assessment of reliability and accuracy, and tabulation of results.
The sample in this study includes 40 contemporary definitions of ecotourism, all of which were published after 1990. Based on the assumption that the most recent of definitions have benefited from antecedent efforts to define the concept, these definitions have been included in order to explore contemporary definitional debate. Definitions from various sources were included to gain a broad perspective in an attempt to define ecotourism better.
A set of tentative themes were determined in a pilot study, with a preliminary analysis of the definitional sample, as well as on the basis of antecedent research, fifteen criteria was refined to analysis of ecotourism definitions. They are: distribution of benefits to community and others, democratization, sustainability, preservation/ conservation, monitoring and assessment of environmental impacts, education, minimizing impacts, small scale, ethics/ responsibility/ awareness, reliance on parks and protected areas, management, enjoyment/ experience, culture, adventure and nature-based.
The findings of this study confirmed the variability in existing ecotourism definitions. Of the fifteen criteria used for analysis, six were identified as appearing most frequently in the definitional literature. These criteria include nature-based, preservation/conservation, contribution to local community, environmental education, ethics/responsibility and sustainability. These six distinct criteria are reflective of an evolutionary process whereby the thematic emphasis of ecotourism definitions has changed over time. Based on these six distinct criteria, a composite working definition for ecotourism is presented. Ecotourism is in concert with the principle ethics of sustainable tourism, it is a responsible form of nature-based tourism, whereby environmental and cultural education, impact management, and community involvement (control, benefits, and scale) are paramount to the experience. Ecotourism actively contributes to the conservation and preservation of the environment on which it depends.
This preliminary definition and associated criteria will form the foundation for the researcher’s future work, with the understanding that the definition is evolutionary, and will continue to be shaped by the researcher’s accumulative understanding of ecotourism.