Impact of rural tourism development on women's livelihood capital in ethnic minority regions from perspective of subjective and objective comparison: A case study of Bapo Village, Jinghong City, Yunnan Province

Abstract

[Objective] Improving women's livelihood capital in ethnic minority regions is crucial to achieving gender equality and women's comprehensive development. Rural tourism provides a favorable environment for changes in women's livelihoods. This paper aims to clarify the mechanism and degree of rural tourism's impact on women's livelihood capital, offering a reference for formulating targeted policies to enhance it. [Methods] Based on a theoretical analysis of the relationship between rural tourism development and women's livelihood capital in ethnic minority regions, an empirical study was conducted on women in Bapo Village, Jinghong City, Yunnan Province. Using 2005 and 2019 as evaluation time points, women's livelihood capital was measured through questionnaire surveys, semi-structured interviews, and statistical analysis. The impact of rural tourism development on women's livelihood capital was explored from both subjective and objective perspectives. [Results] (1) On the objective level, rural tourism development is an effective way to enhance women's livelihood capital in Bapo Village. Social and financial capital gradually became dominant in the livelihood capital structure of women in Bapo Village. (2) On the subjective level, women in Bapo Village held a positive attitude towards the impact of rural tourism development on their livelihood capital, especially regarding changes in natural and physical capital. (3) The discrepancy between the objective and subjective evaluations of women's livelihood capital could be attributed to the difference between the livelihood capital changes brought about by rural tourism development and their individual expectations. [Conclusion] Rural tourism development can help enhance women's livelihood capital, yet its impact on various dimensions of livelihood capital differs at the subjective and objective levels. In the future, local governments and tourism enterprises should adjust the direction of rural tourism development in a timely manner according to the actual needs of different types of women, increase their participation in rural tourism, and promote the diversification of women's livelihood strategies.

Keywords

• rural tourism|ethnic minority regions|women|livelihood capital|entropy method|bapo village, jinghong city