A Critical Analysis of Motivational Factors of Host Communities for Developing Ecotourism in Sikkim

Abstract

Purpose: The primary aim of this study is to identify the motivational factors that influence the local communities to get involved in ecotourism related activities in the ecotourism zones of Sikkim. Two villages namely Okharey and Lachung in the extremely popular ecotourism zones of western and northern part of Sikkim were studied to identify the motivational factors.

Design/Methodology/Approach: Mix method approach was applied to study the motivational factors. Primary data was collected through semi-structured questionnaire as well as interviews with the local people who were engaged in ecotourism, along with field observation as well as interview with the government officials. The sample of the local community was collected usings now ball sampling technique. Secondary data was obtained from books, journals, government reports and internet sources. Descriptive statistical analysis was used for the analysis of the quantitative data collected by the questionnaire survey method while Qualitative data focused more on drawing meaning from the content of the data.

Findings: The result shows that increasing tourists’ inflow in the state has motivated the local communities to engage themselves in ecotourism related activities in both the studied villages. Host community i.e. locals have grasped that ecotourism related activities provide an employment opportunity which further helps to enhance their socio-economic condition. Educating the local community about the positive and negative impacts of ecotourism play a major role in motivating them while employment and monetary benefits also play a significant role in motivating the locals

Originality/Value: This study will be beneficial to a sit will help identify the factors that motivates host community and can be applied in developing new ecotourism destinations across the country.