Strategies and Challenges for Bridging Tradition and Innovation: A Case of Tourism Management in Ebian Yi Autonomous County in China

Tourism is a major driver of global economic and social development. Within this sector, ethnic rural tourism plays a vital role in promoting cultural preservation and poverty alleviation in marginalised regions. While existing research emphasises community participation and local entrepreneurship, the roles of external tourism business managers remain largely overlooked. This gap is especially relevant in contexts like Ebian Yi Autonomous County, where external actors are embedded in complex governance systems to deliver rural revitalisation goals. This study examines how these managers operate, the challenges they face, and the strategies to improve their effectiveness. This study adopts a qualitative case study approach, appropriate for exploring complex dynamics in rural tourism through in-depth and diverse interview data. Compared to quantitative methods, this approach enables a deeper understanding of context, meaning, and stakeholder perspectives. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 participants, including external tourism managers, employees and local community members. Thematic data analysis provide three key findings: First, external tourism managers perform multifunctional roles across enterprise, government, and community domains, shaped by organisational background and personal identity. Second, their functions are constrained by structural exclusion and institutional fragmentation, leaving them present but ineffective. Third, three strategies emerged: enhancing structural conditions, enabling institutional empowerment, and fostering cultural integration. Academically, this study identifies external managers as a distinct category of actors in rural tourism governance. Its findings support a contextual adaptation of Agency Theory and Social Network Analysis through the concepts of Adaptive Agency and Suspended Agency under multi-principal relations, and marginalised structural holes within dual governance structures. Practically, the research calls on governments to establish Destination Management Organisations for multi-actor coordination; on enterprises to empower managers with clearer roles and greater autonomy; on communities to support integration through elder mediation; and on external managers to engage with local norms and networks. The study is limited by its single-case design and managerial focus, which may restrict broader generalisability. Future research could explore comparative cases, include community perspectives, and apply mixed methods to validate and extend the findings.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

dba

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Wales Trinity Saint David

Year dc:date.issued

2026

Author dc:creator

• Hu, Jiaqi

• GV Hamdden Adloniant
• HD Diwydiannau. Defnydd tir. Llafur

Dc Identifier Grantnumber

UWTSD

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:4265