Page 47 - Sustaining Accommodation SMES

5.1 Qualitative Study

venience issues (e.g., access to recycling), and the influence of social
norms and expectations.

2. Personal Capabilities. Codes focused on limitations or strengths re-
lated to financial resources, organisational literacy, social status, and,
critically, behaviour-specific knowledge and skills required for sus-
tainable operations.
3. Attitudinal Factors. This coding captured internal motivations, in-
cluding personal values, general environmentalist predisposition
(abstract norms), behaviour-specific (concrete) norms and beliefs,
non-environmental attitudes (e.g., prioritizing profit over green ini-
tiatives), and the perceived costs and benefits associated with im-
plementing sustainability actions.

To distinguish motivations and challenges clearly, the analysis actively
segregated all identified factors into categories that either explicitly sup-
ported (Pro) sustainability and iso 21401 standard adoption or opposed
(Against) them. A separate code, Anticipated Needs, was also used to cap-
ture the practical support required for successful transition, such as access
to detailed knowledge, technical support, or financial resources. Results
from this qualitative study also informed the development of quantitative
survey.
In addition to the interview analysis, the complementary Scoping
Study (Phase 1) was initially designed as a structured scoping exercise
aimed at systematically mapping sustainability issues, actions, drivers
and impacts related to accommodation smes. The study employed a
focused content analysis template to organise evidence across environ-
mental, cultural, social and economic dimensions. For each identified
issue or challenge, the intended analytical logic was to document the ac-
tions or behaviours adopted by smes, the resulting sustainability impacts
supported by factual evidence, and the underlying drivers shaping these
outcomes, culminating in practice-oriented recommendations. During
implementation, however, it became evident that the available literature
was uneven in both coverage and level of detail, particularly with re-
spect to sme-specific practices and empirically documented impacts in
the Mediterranean context. As a result, this phase did not develop into
a full scoping review in the formal methodological sense. Instead, the
literature analysis remained intentionally selective and exploratory, fo-
cusing on sources that could meaningfully support the interpretation of
interview findings rather than providing an exhaustive mapping of exist-

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