The action logic and interpretation framework of residents’ resistance in rural tourism development

Abstract

While the development of rural tourism promotes the socio-economic development of the destination, it also stimulates contradictions and conflicts between different parties. To explore the strategy choices and action logic underlying the residents’ resistance in rural tourism development, this paper conducted a case study of Likeng village in Wuyuan county, Jiangxi province, China. It was found that although the resistance strategies of residents underwent a transformation from public resistance to sheltered resistance, the internal logic of the resistance behaviour is the capital-based game between community residents and tourism developers. Residents rely on their original cultural and social capital advantages to choose the most effective strategy to change their capital position and ultimately achieve an acceptable balance of interests in the rural tourism field. The outcome of such resistance is not the absolute obedience of one party, but a balance of interests and mutual compromise formed by the two parties in a continuous process of reconciliation.