We applied Sen’s capabilities approach to examine how human development influences the association between tourism expansion and economic growth in different groups of developed, developing, and transitional countries. The mediation test explores the distinctive patterns of the Human Development Index as a mediator between tourism and per capita GDP. Developed nations exhibit a significant negative mediation effect, hinting at saturation and competition challenges, while developing and transition economies showcase a positive and considerable mediation effect, emphasizing the potential for tourism to fuel economic growth under favorable human development conditions. In addition, we conducted a convergent cross-mapping causality test highlighting the contextual nuances in the tourism-growth relationship.
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