ABSTRACT
Within traditional economic theory, small businesses are often promoted and encouraged primarily for economic reasons, such as their contribution to socioeconomic development, employment, and gap fi lling through innovation (Walker and Green,1979; Nafziger 1990; Stanworth and Gray 1991; Teszler 1993). These assumptions have also been credited to small tourism businesses (STBs) (Brohman 1996; Andriotis 2002; Rogerson 2002; Morrison 2002). Added to these primarily macroeconomic assumptions is the hypothesis that STBs also signifi cantly enhance the social and cultural life of the destination (Echtner 1995; Buhalis and Cooper 1998; Main 2001) and are more environmentally appropriate and economically benefi cial, particularly when juxtaposed against larger, foreign-owned tourism concerns. It is suggested that these assumptions have been given greater legitimacy within the current discussion on sustainable tourism development, where there is a stress on local ownership, smaller scale, and spreading the benefi ts within the host community (Brohman 1996; Koh 1996; Dahles 1999, 2000; Rogerson 2002).
