Effects of tourism-related cooperatives on community development in Appalachia

Rising poverty rates, increases in joblessness, and the depletion of traditional means of livelihood (such as agriculture and large industry), are all forces working to diminish the ability for the rural Appalachian to make a living (Appalachian Regional Commission, 1993). Many rural development professionals interested in cultivating new options are including the concept of the cooperative as a tool for economic development. However, there is some controversy over whether the cooperative form of organization is an optimal method of economic development for rural America. The same had been said about tourism as a contributor to economic development. This thesis uses case study analysis to examine three current cooperatives and their contributions to the community, using a Weberian lens of formal versus substantive rationality. Results indicated a tentative relationship between amount and type of contributions of the tourism-related cooperative organization and type of rationality for its existence.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Sociology

Department dc:contributor.department

Sociology

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

1994

Author dc:creator

• McGehee, Nancy G.

Chairs dc:contributor.committeechair

• Flora, Cornelia B.
• Fuller, Theodore

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Flora, Jan L.
• Uysal, Muzaffer

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

etd-06232009-063350

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/43444