The Influence of Place Attachment and Experience Use History on Perceived Depreciative Visitor Behavior and Crowding in an Urban National Park

Research on recreational place attachment suggests that place identity, or the emotional/symbolic ties people have to places, and place dependence, which describes a functional attachment to a specific place, influence the perception of social and environmental site conditions. Recent research, however, has found that place attachment is not always a predictor of such perceptions. This study investigated the influence of place attachment and experience use history on the perception of depreciative visitor behavior, recreation impacts and crowding in an urban national park. In 2006, 605 on-site visitors to the heavily-used Viennese part of the Danube Floodplains National Park were asked about past experience, place attachment, perceptions of depreciative visitor behavior, crowding, changes in visitor numbers during the past ten years, and recreation impacts on wildlife. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the two dimensions of place attachment. Linear regression analyses found that place identity and place dependence were related to some perceived depreciative visitor behaviors and visitor number changes but not to crowding, while experience use history additionally related to perceived crowding. Visitors with higher place attachment and past experience were more sensitive to social and environmental site conditions. Management implications of the findings are discussed.     

Effects of Place Identity,Place Dependence,and Experience-Use History on Perceptions of Recreation Impacts in a Natural Setting

It is generally accepted that recreation use in natural environments results in some degree of negative social and environmental impact. Environmental managers are tasked with mitigating the impact while providing beneficial recreation opportunities. Research on the factors that influence visitors' perceptions of environmental and social conditions is necessary to inform sound environmental management of protected natural areas. This study examines the effect of prior experience with the setting and two dimensions of place attachment (i.e., place identity and place dependence) on visitors' perceptions of three types of recreation impacts (i.e., depreciative behavior, environmental impacts, and recreation conflict). Principal components analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling were used to test the study hypotheses using data collected from 351 visitors through on-site questionnaires (response rate of 93 percent). The results show that prior experience exhibited a moderate and significant direct positive effect on place identity, place dependence, and visitors' perceptions of recreation impacts. Contrary to study hypotheses and prior research, neither place dependence nor place identity exhibited a significant effect on the dependent variables. The results show that prior experience causes visitors to be more sensitive to depreciative behaviors, environmental impacts, and recreation conflict. These findings raise concerns over potential visitor displacement and deterioration of site conditions. Implications for resource managers are discussed, which include education, modifying visitor use patterns, and site design strategies.     

Toward the Improvement of Trail Classification in National Parks Using the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum Approach

Trail settings in national parks are essential management tools for improving both ecological conservation efforts and the quality of visitor experiences. This study proposes a plan for the appropriate maintenance of trails in Chubusangaku National Park, Japan, based on the recreation opportunity spectrum (ROS) approach. First, we distributed 452 questionnaires to determine park visitors’ preferences for setting a trail (response rate = 68 %). Respondents’ preferences were then evaluated according to the following seven parameters: access, remoteness, naturalness, facilities and site management, social encounters, visitor impact, and visitor management. Using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis, the visitors were classified into seven groups. Last, we classified the actual trails according to the visitor questionnaire criteria to examine the discrepancy between visitors’ preferences and actual trail settings. The actual trail classification indicated that while most developed trails were located in accessible places, primitive trails were located in remote areas. However, interestingly, two visitor groups seemed to prefer a well-conserved natural environment and, simultaneously, easily accessible trails. This finding does not correspond to a premise of the ROS approach, which supposes that primitive trails should be located in remote areas without ready access. Based on this study’s results, we propose that creating trails, which afford visitors the opportunity to experience a well-conserved natural environment in accessible areas is a useful means to provide visitors with diverse recreation opportunities. The process of data collection and analysis in this study can be one approach to produce ROS maps for providing visitors with recreational opportunities of greater diversity and higher quality.     

The Effects of Local Ecological Knowledge, Minimum-Impact Knowledge, and Prior Experience on Visitor Perceptions of the Ecological Impacts of Backcountry Recreation

An on-site visitor survey instrument was developed to examine visitor perceptions of resource impacts resulting from backcountry hiking activities. The survey was conducted in the Bear Lake Corridor of Rocky Mountain National Park, CO and examined visitor characteristics that may influence visitor perceptions of specific resource conditions. Findings indicate that visitors are more perceptive of recreation-related resource impacts that are the result of undesirable behavior and, while visitors do perceive resource impacts, visitors tend to be more affected by crowding. Factors such as local ecological knowledge and knowledge of minimal-impact practices positively influence visitor perceptions of resource impacts. These findings support the use of visitor education on ecological knowledge and minimum-impact as a means of increasing visitor awareness of recreation impact issues.     

An Interpretive Study of Yosemite National Park Visitors’ Perspectives Toward Alternative Transportation in Yosemite Valley

The National Park Service (NPS) is increasingly focusing on alternative transportation systems in national parks to address environmental and social problems arising from a historical reliance on personal automobiles as the primary means of visitor access. Despite the potential advantages, alternative transportation may require a reorientation in the way that Americans have experienced national parks since the advent of auto-tourism in the early twentieth century. Little research exists, however, on visitor perspectives towards alternative transportation or the rationale underlying their perspectives. It remains unclear how transportation systems affect visitors’ experiences of the park landscape or the factors influencing their travel behavior in the parks. This report presents an interpretive study of visitor perspectives toward transportation management in the Yosemite Valley area of Yosemite National Park, California. Qualitative analysis of 160 semi-structured interviews identified individual psychological factors as well as situational influences that affect visitors’ behavior and perspectives. Individual psychological factors include perceived freedom, environmental values and beliefs, prior experience with Yosemite National Park and other national parks, prior experience with alternative transportation in national parks, and sensitivity to subjective perceptions of crowding. Situational factors included convenience, access, and flexibility of travel modes, as well as type of visit, type of group, and park use level. Interpretive communication designed to encourage voluntary visitor use of alternative transportation should focus on these psychological and situational factors. Although challenges remain, the results of this study suggest approaches for shaping the way Americans visit and experience their national parks to encourage environmental sustainability.     

Integrating Social Marketing into Sustainable Resource Management at Padre Island National Seashore: An Attitude-Based Segmentation Approach

High demand for outdoor recreation and increasing diversity in outdoor recreation participants have imposed a great challenge on the National Park Service (NPS), which is tasked with the mission to provide open access for quality outdoor recreation and maintain the ecological integrity of the park system. In addition to management practices of education and restrictions, building a sense of natural resource stewardship among visitors may also facilitate the NPS ability to react to this challenge. The purpose of our study is to suggest a segmentation approach that is built on the social marketing framework and aimed at influencing visitor behaviors to support conservation. Attitude toward natural resource management, an indicator of natural resource stewardship, is used as the basis for segmenting park visitors. This segmentation approach is examined based on a survey of 987 visitors to the Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS) in Texas in 2003. Results of the K-means cluster analysis identify three visitor segments: Conservation-Oriented, Development-Oriented, and Status Quo visitors. This segmentation solution is verified using respondents’ socio-demographic backgrounds, use patterns, experience preferences, and attitudes toward a proposed regulation. Suggestions are provided to better target the three visitor segments and facilitate a sense of natural resource stewardship among them.     

Proactive monitoring and adaptive management of social carrying capacity in Arches National Park: an application of computer simulation modeling

Public visits to parks and protected areas continue to increase and may threaten the integrity of natural and cultural resources and the quality of the visitor experience. Scientists and managers have adopted the concept of carrying capacity to address the impacts of visitor use. In the context of outdoor recreation, the social component of carrying capacity refers to the level of visitor use that can be accommodated in parks and protected areas without diminishing the quality of the visitor experience to an unacceptable degree. This study expands and illustrates the use of computer simulation modeling as a tool for proactive monitoring and adaptive management of social carrying capacity at Arches National Park. A travel simulation model of daily visitor use throughout the Park's road and trail network and at selected attraction sites was developed, and simulations were conducted to estimate a daily social carrying capacity for Delicate Arch, an attraction site in Arches National Park, and for the Park as a whole. Further, a series of simulations were conducted to estimate the effect of a mandatory shuttle bus system on daily social carrying capacity of Delicate Arch to illustrate how computer simulation modeling can be used as a tool to facilitate adaptive management of social carrying capacity.     

Factors affecting overall satisfaction with a river recreation experience

Visitor satisfaction has been a consistently stated goal of outdoor recreation management. Recreation resource managers provide opportunities for the visiting public with the anticipation of satisfying the needs of the visitors. Management efforts are often evaluated in terms of visitor satisfaction. In the recent decade, a multiple satisfactions approach has been the primary research paradigm guiding visitor satisfaction research. This paradigm has focused primarily upon behavioral-type dimensions such as crowding, goal attainment, and resource impacts resulting from behavior. The purpose of this study was to examine the importance of a setting dimension relative to behavioral-type dimensions for explaining differences in visitor satisfaction. A sample of 895 river visitors were sent a questionnaire in the mail; 682 were returned for a 76.2% response rate. Regression analysis indicated the setting dimension was ranked as one of the most important dimensions for explaining differences in visitor satisfaction. Other dimensions considered included group behavior, perceived crowding, parking, past experience, encounters, use levels, and time waiting. Implications for management are discussed.     

Managing bog environments for recreational experiences

Bogs are of interest to outdoor recreationists, but little information exists concerning how recreation resource managers might manage these areas to enhance visitor benefits. This study evaluates bog visitor characteristics and experiences, visual preferences, and reasons for visiting. Implications for recreational resource management of bogs include the location and design of boardwalk trails and management of understory vegetation to meet the visual preferences and motives of bog visitors.     

Recreation conflict potential and management implications in the northern/central Black Forest Nature Park

This study explores conflict in recreational use of the Black Forest Nature Park (BFNP) by six different nature sports groups as a function of infrastructure, forest management and other users. A multi-step, methodological triangulation conflict model from US recreation management was applied and tested in the Park. Results from two groups, hikers and mountain bikers, are analysed in depth. The main conflict potentials were due to infrastructure and value conflicts. These were influenced by various visitor characteristics such as resource attachment, experiences, activity-style, expectations and motives. Results of quantitative data analysis were further interpreted by interviews with agency and group leaders. This methodological combination reveals a robust understanding of recreation conflict and management in the BFNP.     

A Proposed Methodology to Assess the Quality of Public Use Management in Protected Areas

In recent years, the goal of nature preservation has faced, almost worldwide, an increase in the number of visitors who are interested in experiencing protected areas resources, landscapes and stories. Spain is a good example of this process. The rapidly increasing numbers of visitors have prompted administrations and managers to offer and develop a broad network of facilities and programs in order to provide these visitors with information, knowledge and recreation. But, are we doing it the best way? This research focuses on developing and applying a new instrument for evaluating the quality of visitor management in parks. Different areas are analyzed with this instrument (78 semi-quantitative indicators): planning and management capacity (planning, funding, human resources), monitoring, reception, information, interpretation, environmental education, training, participation and volunteer's programs. Thus, we attempt to gain a general impression of the development of the existing management model, detecting strengths and weaknesses. Although Spain's National Parks constituted the specific context within which to develop the evaluation instrument, the design thereof is intended to provide a valid, robust and flexible method for application to any system, network or set of protected areas in other countries. This paper presents the instrument developed, some results obtained following its application to Spanish National parks, along with a discussion on the limits and validity thereof.     

Determining Visitors’ Dispositions Toward the Designation of a Greek National Park

This article presents the findings of the first major visitor survey conducted at the Central Rhodope Mountain Complex, situated in northern Greece. The study area is one of a number of sites planned to become National Parks under a recent initiative of the Greek government. We used a logistic regression method to define significant predictors of visitors’ awareness and attitude toward park designation, as well as their willingness to pay a conditional entrance fee. Study findings demonstrated that the probability of being aware of the park designation initiative is higher for visitors who obtained information from travel agencies or media to make their destination choice, compared to visitors who resorted to word-of-mouth recommendations. Knowledge and attitudes toward animals living in the study area revealed a limited influence on visitors’ dispositions toward park designation. The results of this study call for action to implement education programs for National Park users. These programs should aim at rendering the environmental characteristics of the Central Rhodope Mountain Complex to be significant predictors of visitors’ dispositions toward the study area. This would favor its uniqueness as a destination, as well as contribute to its long-term economic sustainability.     

Crowding and Experience-Use History: A Study of the Moderating Effect of Place Attachment Among Water-Based Recreationists

Effective recreation resource management relies on understanding visitor perceptions and behaviors. Given current and increasing pressures on water resources, understanding crowding evaluations seems important. Beyond crowding, however, variables that possibly relate to or influence crowding are of interest and in particular, place attachment and experience-use history (EUH). As EUH is related to place attachment and likely affects crowding, this study explored the moderating effect of place attachment dimensions on the relationships between EUH and visitor crowding evaluations. Water based recreationists at a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers site were contacted onsite and asked questions related to experience-use history, crowding evaluations, place attachment, and activity participation. Anglers and campers at the site identified similar crowding perceptions and place attachments. Only one of eight models tested revealed a moderating effect. Specifically, place identity moderated the relationship between the total times visited in the past twelve months and expected crowding among anglers. As such, the quest continues to understand the relationship among these important variables.     

The indicator performance estimate approach to determining acceptable wilderness conditions

Using data from a study conducted in the Cranberry Wilderness Area of West Virginia, United States, this paper describes how a modified importance—performance approach can be used to prioritize wilderness indicators and determine how much change from the pristine is acceptable. The approach uses two key types of information: (1) indicator importance, or visitor opinion as to which wilderness indicators have the greatest influence on their experience, and (2) management performance, or the extent to which actual indicator conditions exceed or are within visitor expectations. Performance was represented by calculating indicator performance estimates (IPEs), as defined by standardized differences between actual conditions and visitor preferences for each indicator. The results for each indicator are then presented graphically on a four-quadrant matrix for objective interpretation. Each quadrant represents a management response: keep up the good work, concentrate here, low priority, or possible overkill. The technique allows managers to more systematically and effectively utilize information routinely collected during the limits of acceptable change wilderness planning process. This paper is submitted with the approval of the Director of the West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station as Scientific Article No. 541. The study was funded in part, through a grant from the USDA Forest Service, Monongahela National Forest.     

Wilderness permit accuracy: Differences between reported and actual use

Wilderness permits are valuable tools for recording backcountry use patterns. They provide a valuable basis upon which management decisions are made. Unfortunately, significant inaccuracies in reporting permit data result from noncompliance, transmission errors, and changes in visitor plans. Data from Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in California show that in 1978, 97 percent of the parties obtained wilderness permits. Changes in visitor plans resulted in an over-reporting of total persons by 8 percent and of visitor nights by 23 percent. The latter was due primarily to shortening of trip length. Over-reporting was greatest when permits were issued well in advance of the trip. Backcountry managers should be aware of possible inaccuracies in permit data and may want to adjust for them under certain circumstances.     

Valuation of National Park System Visitation: The Efficient Use of Count Data Models, Meta-Analysis, and Secondary Visitor Survey Data

The National Park Service (NPS) currently manages a large and diverse system of park units nationwide which received an estimated 279 million recreational visits in 2011. This article uses park visitor data collected by the NPS Visitor Services Project to estimate a consistent set of count data travel cost models of park visitor willingness to pay (WTP). Models were estimated using 58 different park unit survey datasets. WTP estimates for these 58 park surveys were used within a meta-regression analysis model to predict average and total WTP for NPS recreational visitation system-wide. Estimated WTP per NPS visit in 2011 averaged $102 system-wide, and ranged across park units from $67 to $288. Total 2011 visitor WTP for the NPS system is estimated at $28.5 billion with a 95% confidence interval of $19.7–$43.1 billion. The estimation of a meta-regression model using consistently collected data and identical specification of visitor WTP models greatly reduces problems common to meta-regression models, including sample selection bias, primary data heterogeneity, and heteroskedasticity, as well as some aspects of panel effects. The article provides the first estimate of total annual NPS visitor WTP within the literature directly based on NPS visitor survey data.     

The Value of Countryside Access: A Contingent Valuation Survey of Visitors to the Ridgeway National Trail in the United Kingdom

A contingent valuation survey of users of the 140 km Ridgeway National Trail was undertaken to estimate the value that users place on access to the Trail. The survey found that users had a mean willingness to pay for access to the Ridgeway of £1.24 per visit (£1.13– £1.36 95% Confidence Limits). With around 150 000 visits to the Ridgeway each year, this gives an estimated annual aggregate benefit of £186 000 (£169 500– £204 000 95% Confidence Limits) plus the economic benefits to local economies of visitor spending of some £0.8 million. This compares with the costs of Trail maintenance of around £154 000 per year. The development of National Trails in England for recreation and tourism is also discussed.     

The Sustainable Use of Sensitive Countryside Sites for Sport and Active Recreation

Sport and active recreation, as an important area of leisure activity that can take place in the countryside, has recently been the subject of much discussion both in central government reports and statutory agencies' studies. This paper examines principles for their planning and management, particularly in sensitive areas such as National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. It takes the view that effective recreation management should be promoted, suggesting that the designation of countryside areas should not imply that they are unchanging, or that environmental policies should be applied uniformly. The Government's UK Sustainable Development Strategy 1994 emphasizes the importance of assessing capacity and of management and monitoring in providing for leisure. Yet knowledge of recreation impacts is incomplete. A number of principles for the management of countryside recreation are given, and examples given of such principles in use. These stress the need for effective participation by the various interests involved at sites and the importance of voluntary approaches to the resolution of conflicts.     

Mount St. Helens: A case study of managing for change in wildland recreation

Mount St. Helens provides an interesting case study of a forest and wildland area that has been radically altered in recent history. As a result of volcanic activity, the recreation environment has changed with respect to the setting, climbing opportunities, and motivations for mountaineering. An evaluation process using both qualitative and quantitative methods was developed to determine what the motivations, demographic characteristics, and preferred management techniques were for the posteruption Mount St. Helens mountain-climbing visitor. Results suggest that changes have occurred in the “new” or posteruption climbing visitor. These changes have not all been congruent with those anticipated by management. For example, the climbing visitor is now less interested in climbing opportunities and more concerned with seeing the crater and other volcanic-related features. This article discusses the findings of this research in light of how resource managers might consider the issue of visitor changes in both demands and types of uses. For example, determining quota numbers based on sociological determinants (e.g., desire for solitude) need to be firmly grounded in who the visitors actually are rather than who they were. Consequently, management tools such as the Recreational Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) and Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) may need to be altered to accommodate a changing resource or visitor base. These and other findings have implications for the future management practices of the Mount St. Helens area and other environments where the recreation resources have undergone rapid and profound change.     

Effects of Stock Use and Backpackers on Water Quality in Wilderness in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, USA

During 2010–2011, a study was conducted in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (SEKI) to evaluate the influence of pack animals (stock) and backpackers on water quality in wilderness lakes and streams. The study had three main components: (1) a synoptic survey of water quality in wilderness areas of the parks, (2) paired water quality sampling above and below several areas with differing types and amounts of visitor use, and (3) intensive monitoring at six sites to document temporal variations in water quality. Data from the synoptic water quality survey indicated that wilderness lakes and streams are dilute and have low nutrient and Escherichia coli concentrations. The synoptic survey sites were categorized as minimal use, backpacker-use, or mixed use (stock and backpackers), depending on the most prevalent type of use upstream from the sampling locations. Sites with mixed use tended to have higher concentrations of most constituents (including E. coli) than those categorized as minimal-use (P ≤ 0.05); concentrations at backpacker-use sites were intermediate. Data from paired-site sampling indicated that E. coli, total coliform, and particulate phosphorus concentrations were greater in streams downstream from mixed-use areas than upstream from those areas (P ≤ 0.05). Paired-site data also indicated few statistically significant differences in nutrient, E. coli, or total coliform concentrations in streams upstream and downstream from backpacker-use areas. The intensive-monitoring data indicated that nutrient and E. coli concentrations normally were low, except during storms, when notable increases in concentrations of E. coli, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon, and turbidity occurred. In summary, results from this study indicate that water quality in SEKI wilderness generally is good, except during storms; and visitor use appears to have a small, but statistically significant influence on stream water quality.