A conceptual review of homestay community resilience factors - Theory and Practice in Hospitality and Tourism Research - page 591

can be stored. In the context of system ecology,
one of the most familiar definitions is provided
by the Resilience Alliance Research Consortium,
which defines resilience as the capacity of an eco-
system to tolerate disturbance without collapsing
into a qualitatively different state that is controlled
by a different set of process (Norris, Steven, Pfef-
ferbaum, Wyche & Pfefferbaum, 2008).

Hence, in the midst of rising global change and
related shocks and disturbances, there is a demand
to comprehend the factors that allow homestay
tourism industry to cope alongside, and make
affirmative adaptations. In the face of disturbances
and frequently ongoing unpredictable change, a
resilience-based approach to understanding and
managing homestay tourism is useful as it consid-
ers the skill of an arrangement to uphold its use-
ful characteristics and individuality in a coupled
social-ecological system (Gunderson, 2001).

2.3 Homestay community resilience
Community resilience has been associated with disas-
ter in many studies done earlier (Mancini & Bowen,
2009; Norris, Steven, Pfefferbaum, Wyche & Pfeffer-
baum, 2008). The concepts of community resilience
refer to the capacity of individual or community to
cope with stress, overcome adversity or adapt posi-
tively to change (Mancini & Bowen, 2009). The abil-
ity to bounce back from negative experiences may
reflect the innate qualities of individuals or be the
result of learning and experience. Regardless of the
origin of resilience, there is evidence to suggest that
it can be developed and enhanced to promote greater
wellbeing. Resilience is not regarded as a quality that
is either present or absent in a person or a group but
rather a process may vary across circumstances or
time (Luthar, 2003).
In Malaysia, homestay community resilience
may not be associated with disaster as severe natu-
ral disaster does not happen in the country. In the
context of this study, community resilience may be
referred as the ability of the homestay community
to enhance and sustain in the business. It is timely
and vital for the homestay communities to begin
exploring for ways to protect and disseminate what
is valuable and essential for their survival. At the
scale of a village in a homestay tourism system,
society could shift from an unstable village econ-
omy to a stable economy established generally on
homestay tourism or business tourism.
Without spending much on altering the current
infrastructure, the communities have been able to
develop and maneuver the homestay businesses by
seizing supremacy of the existing natural resources,
cultural and heritage assets within the community,
yet the threats to the ecosystems are quite serious
and can put enormous pressure on an area. Such
pressures lead to impacts such as soil erosion,
increased pollution, natural habitat loss, increased
pressure on endangered species and heightened
vulnerability to forest fires. The worries facing
homestay tourism are not just from the threats
facing ecosystems but it is also affected by socio-
political and economic disturbances such as health
concerns, economic recessions, as well as national
and local level issues including the regulatory envi-
ronment (Baker & Coulter, 2007; Gössling & Hall,
2006).

2.4 Prominent homestay community resilience
factors
Individual communities, regardless of ethnic sta-
tus, differ highly in how they experience commu-
nity strengths, setbacks, and the perceived severity
of risk (Berkes & Jolly, 2002). There is no collective
list of key, effective protective and recovery factors,
but a review of recent research in the tourism and
enterprise survival literature recognizes regular
and prominent attributes among resilient, dynamic
communities. These factors include: (i) lifestyle
values of homestay operators and family members
that motivate their participation in the tourism
industry; (ii) business age and size of homestay vil-
lages; (iii); level of social and human capital; (iv)
flexibility of homestay community; (v) relationship
with authorities; and (vi) ecological condition.

2.4.1 Lifestyle values of homestay operators and
family members
It was highlighted that small tourism business
owners and operators that are predominantly in
non-urban areas are usually driven strongly by
non-economic factors such as lifestyle (Ateljevic &
Doorne, 2000; Shaw, Williams & Thomas, 2004).
Beyond pure economics, lifestyle considerations by
small tourism entrepreneurs modify the entry and
exit characteristics of enterprises in rural tourism
sectors (Ateljevic & Doorne, 2000). Determinants
of community resilience in economic sectors such
as community-based homestay tourism are inter-
related with considerations of lifestyle, sense of
place, identity, and cultural values (Sharpley, 2002).
Following this, various elements can build up the
resilience of homestay tourism in the country and
their capability to innovate, reorganize, and adapt.

2.4.2 Business age and size of homestay villages
In the early years, businesses are more prone to shut
down because a business's age is usually positively
related to its future survival (Bosma, Van Praag,
Thurik & De Wit, 2004; Dunne & Hughes, 1994).
Despite access to funding and healthy revenue and
profit levels are essential to business survival and
success, the new and young enterprises have less