Decent Work‐Based Ecotourism Businesses: A Multi‐Theoretical Framework for Sustainable Tourism Systems

ABSTRACT

This study develops a conceptual framework for decent work‐based ecotourism businesses, defined as enterprises creating productive, fair, and dignified work opportunities in rural and nature‐based contexts while advancing human‐centered development and sustainable tourism. The study employed a systematic literature review and meta‐synthesis of 53 peer‐reviewed articles. Clear inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied, and final studies were quality assessed using standardized procedures. Thematic coding was conducted to extract, categorize, and structure key concepts. We identified 45 principles of human agency, organized into nine networking and social mechanisms, grouped under three institutional and regulatory requirements. Drawing on empowerment, social capital, and institutional theory, the three‐layer framework clarifies the role of each component: principles of human agency specify what enables decent work, networking and social mechanisms describe how these strategies function, and institutional and regulatory requirements define why they guide long‐term direction. The causal logic operates progressively: empowered individuals leverage social networks to achieve collective outcomes, which require institutional structures for enforcement. This multi‐theoretical synthesis advances understanding beyond fragmented views of sustainability, positioning decent work as a dynamic, relational, and institutionally embedded process. While theoretically grounded, the framework's practical applicability requires empirical validation through future field studies across diverse ecotourism contexts.