Presenting a Model of Urban Brand Governance Based on the Economy of Art and Cultural Industries Toward the Development of Creative Tourism
Keywords:
Urban Brand Governance, Art Economy, Cultural Industries, Creative Tourism, Urban Branding, Creative City, Cultural DevelopmentAbstract
The present study aimed to develop a model of urban brand governance based on the economy of art and cultural industries toward the development of creative tourism in Tehran. This study employed an exploratory mixed-method approach. Grounded theory was used in the qualitative phase, while structural equation modeling was applied in the quantitative phase. The qualitative population included university professors, urban managers, and experts in tourism, cultural industries, and creative economy in Tehran, from whom 22 participants were selected through purposive and snowball sampling. In the quantitative phase, 384 managers, experts, and activists in tourism and cultural industries in Tehran were selected using stratified random sampling. Data collection tools included semi-structured interviews and a researcher-made questionnaire. Qualitative data were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding, while quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS-27 and SmartPLS software. The findings indicated that cultural policymaking with a path coefficient of 0.42, stakeholder participation with a coefficient of 0.36, cultural industry infrastructure with a coefficient of 0.39, urban brand identity management with a coefficient of 0.48, and creative urban marketing with a coefficient of 0.41 had positive and significant effects on creative tourism development. Furthermore, cultural innovation with a coefficient of 0.44 and creative tourism development with a coefficient of 0.53 significantly affected the economic sustainability of urban branding. The model fit indices, including SRMR = 0.054, NFI = 0.91, and GOF = 0.63, confirmed the satisfactory fitness of the proposed model. In addition, the R² values for creative tourism development and economic sustainability of urban branding were 0.71 and 0.68, respectively, indicating strong explanatory power. The results demonstrated that urban brand governance based on the economy of art and cultural industries can serve as an effective strategy for developing creative tourism and strengthening the economic sustainability of urban branding. Coordinated cultural policymaking, development of creative infrastructure, stakeholder participation, and urban identity management can provide the foundation for transforming Tehran into a competitive and creative city at regional and international levels.
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