Entrepreneurial Behaviour in Ecotourism: A Study of Business Intention, Start-up and Operation

Ecotourism is a recognised positive development tool for fragile or sensitive natural areas. However, little is known as to how and why ecotourism business start-up occurs. This includes a limited understanding as to the role of the entrepreneur in facilitating ecotourism business development. This study aimed to address this research gap through development of a motivational process model for ecotourism entrepreneurship. This model was tested using a mixed cross-sectional and longitudinal research design that collected data from two discrete samples; ecotourism students (representing nascent ecotourism entrepreneurs) and ecotourism operators (representing established entrepreneurs).