Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism-Research Planning and Management最新文献

Blue spaces are being increasingly linked to a public health agenda, as the presence of water increases perceived restorativeness. Much research has examined coastal nature experiences and sense of place in coastal areas specifically, but little research has attempted to compare sense of place across different types of natural environments. In this study, we used place meanings to investigate how people perceive, experience, and attach to coastal and inland natural environments, providing new insights into human-nature relations in coastal and inland environments in Denmark. The study uses a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative analysis of free-text responses from a national online PPGIS survey with statistical analysis of background information. Responses from 500 coastal and 500 inland nature visitors were analysed through an inductive coding process, which elicited one hundred different place meanings. These meanings were categorized according to Williams’ (2014) layers of tangible and intangible place meanings. The meaning layer distribution was similar between coastal and inland nature visits, just as the most frequent place meanings were similar across the environments (e.g., Nature, Nice, Forest, Walk). However, significant differences were found among some individual place meanings (e.g., Wild, Vacation, Healing and comfort were more frequent for coastal visits), suggesting special coastal place meanings that should be further explored in future research. The analysis of place meanings was supplemented by an analysis of relevant visit characteristics behind the 500 coastal and 500 inland visits, suggesting great attraction coupled to coastal places (e.g., longer travel distance).

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted people's lifestyles. Camping, as an outdoor activity, has become increasingly popular in urban China, especially during the pandemic. However, existing literature lacks the recognition of changes in the psychological aspects of camping at various stages of health crises. This study developed a comprehensive model to explore the connections between constraints, motivations, satisfaction, and subjective well-being in camping experiences at different stages of COVID-19 pandemic. A two-wave tracking survey was collected in May 2022 during the COVID-19 period, and April 2023 in the post-COVID-19 period. The findings indicate that travelers faced fewer constraints after the health crisis, with their satisfaction levels less affected by these constraints. Travel motivations, however, did not show significant changes. It is worth noting that while camping satisfaction continued to positively impact subjective well-being, its influence notably decreased after the health crisis. This research illuminates the evolving relationship between antecedents and consequences of camping throughout different stages of health crises, providing insights for enhancing camping product and experience design, as well as campground planning and management.

Management implications

This pioneering study examines camping in nearby natural settings across different phases of COVID-19, elucidating differences in well-being outcomes and factors influencing camping experiences. Findings offers invaluable insights into current practices and management strategies related to camping. Campsite managers need to pay attention to the psychological processes of campers at different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, governments and service providers can tailor products and services based on tourists' evolving needs and psychological changes.

Currently we know little about how visitors perceive invasive species, nor how this may vary across visitor cohorts. Previous research suggests that visitors to natural areas have a low awareness of the impact of invasive species. This note reports on a survey of domestic and international visitors (n = 231) in New Zealand, investigating their awareness of invasive wild conifers and attitudes toward their control. Awareness of the wild conifer problem was generally low, especially among international visitors. There were significant differences between domestic and international visitors, and among visitors of different nationalities for how wild conifers were perceived. International visitors, and particularly those from China or other Asian countries were more accepting of wild conifers in the landscape and less supportive of eradication. The findings have implications for management of invasive species, which requires the support of all stakeholders, including tourists, recreationists and their associated sectors.

Providing access to natural areas through recreation is a valuable strategy for garnering social support for nature conservation. Direct experiences bring landscapes into people's perceptible realms and create sense of place and place meaning. This meaning can even be transferred to similar areas through a brand effect. Mega trails can play a role in creating meaning and sense of place for large landscapes. We investigated the sense of place and its spatial scale among hikers on the three national scenic trails forming the triple crown of hiking in the USA (Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trail) and discusses their potential to promote nature conservation at large landscape scales. We surveyed 602 hikers and assessed the level of sense of place and its spatial scale using Likert scales and heatmaps. Analyses of variance were performed to explore their relationships with hike duration, motivation, and trail section popularity. Results suggest that the longer the hiking, the stronger and broader the sense of place. Hikers motivated by national scenic trails present a stronger and broader sense of place, and this difference occurs even among day hikers, suggesting a brand effect. Implementing and promoting mega trails can create extensive meaningful places, facilitating the understanding of ecological processes and helping to promote large-scale nature conservation. Through the brand effect, mega trails have the potential to reach a wider audience, going beyond long-distance hikers and raising the awareness of millions of people who hike at least a short trail section about the importance of large-scale conservation.

Management implications

By offering long experiences in contact with nature, mega trails are associated with a greater sense of place and on a broader spatial scale. These trails help create meaning for large landscapes, raising support for their conservation. Furthermore, mega trails also create brands that reach an audience beyond long-distance hikers. Investing in mega trails that connect large landscapes or cross geographical features, such as biomes or mountain ranges, can help build support to promote connectivity across these landscapes. Corridors protected by mega trails can even facilitate species range shifts in response to climate change, acting as climate corridors.

One of the major concerns for mountainous Protected Area management is the disposal of trash triggered by the influx of visitors. Providing on-site waste collection facilities, such as trash cans, could encourage visitors to stop littering. However, providing such facilities poses logistical challenges especially in altitude destinations due to the collection costs and ethical concerns due to gaps in perception and social norms between site managers and visitors. This study uses a survey conducted in summer 2023 to examine the predictors that influence climbers' compliance with the third principle of the ‘Leave no Trace’ (LNT) code connected to trash disposal norms. Independent sample t-test and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to delineate differences in preferences for trash cans amongst the 353 respondents. Results revealed descriptive norms (climbing habits and prior awareness) and group identity (nationality) as significant predictors of climbers' compliance. Findings indicated a gap in LNT perception between Japanese, expat and inbound climbers, with domestic visitors tending to tolerate the lack of trash cans due to Japanese social norms, whereas international visitors indicated otherwise. Moreover, findings also showed a relationship between regular climbing habits and LNT compliance, with more experienced hikers and climbers manifesting higher awareness and compliance with LNT. The findings will facilitate improved LNT engagement, helping site managers to establish effective communication and promote possible alternatives (e.g. environmental education interventions) as part of a holistic waste management strategy at Mount Fuji and other mountainous frontcountry settings.

Management implications

Driven by the post-covid rebound in nature-based tourism demand, visitor influxes have inundated many mountainous destinations with additional trash. As Protected Areas increasingly use public education outreach programs such as ‘Leave no Trace’ (LNT) to mitigate visitors' trash-related norms, this study has implications for site managers:

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  Encouraging all climbers to engage in LNT practices by providing basic information prior to arrival along with on-site equipment to help collect litter (e.g. trash bags).

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  Actively targeting frontcountry visitor segments with lower awareness of and compliance with LNT practices, such as less-experienced and international climbers.

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  Conducting educational programs that raise awareness, interweave LNT code throughout the site management plan and disseminate the LNT philosophy across cultural norms.

Inclusion and measurement of the various human-dependent factors that modulate wildlife responses to non-consumptive outdoor recreational activities is crucial for improving our understanding of the complex nature by which these activities influence wildlife. A wide range of methods exist to collect this information, yet little is known about whether and how they are used to improve our understanding of the impact of outdoor recreational activity on wildlife. Here, we critically assess the methods used to measure the outdoor recreational activity in 242 studies that focused on discerning their impacts on terrestrial mammals and birds. We identified and categorised the methods used into nine classes: available records, disturbance treatments, observations, camera trapping, GPS tracking devices, traffic counters, audio recordings, questionnaires, and interviews. We found that almost half of the studies (45.5%) used more than one method. Notably, while most studies used available records (59.1%), their use has decreased, and the less commonly used methods (e.g., camera trapping and GPS tracking devices) are encouragingly becoming more prevalent. We also found that even though the diversity of methods is increasing, their use has been limited to collecting information on the intensity of the outdoor recreation, despite the capacity of many to collect additional information (e.g., the behaviour and perceptions of recreationists). This review highlights the need for future studies to expand the range of methods used to measure the outdoor recreational activity, collaborate across disciplines, and consider the broader diversity of information that can be gathered on recreationists.

Outdoor orientation programs (OOPs) are reported to be successful at increasing students' feelings of belongingness. Currently only a handful of measures exist for assessing college students’ sense of belonging. This exploratory study examines three belongingness scales currently used in higher education assessing their effectiveness as measures of OOPs: the Student Belongingness Scale, the Workplace Belongingness Scale, and a one-question belongingness measure. The scales varied in their focus; for example, the Student Belongingness Scale measured perceptions of both peer belonging and institutional belonging. Researchers determined that scales focusing on belongingness to a small group provided the most useful data for OOPs. Management Implications: The findings of this study suggest managers of outdoor recreation programs consider ways to measure a sense of belongingness among participants as belongingness continues to grow as a measurement concept important to managers of outdoor recreation programs. Researchers recommend using an adaptation of the Workplace Belongingness Scale (renamed The Adventure Belongingness Scale) because the scale has both face validity and high correlations with the Behavioral Trust Inventory. The Student Belongingness Scale provides particularly useful data for assessing belongingness to institutions. Both scales should be considered to provide insight into the effectiveness of OOPs. The data for this study were collected via an online survey conducted in the fall of 2021.

Local parks and protected areas (PPAs) offer important settings for nature exposure proximate to home that may encourage local environmental citizenship (LEC); however, there has been limited investigation of this relationship and how it may be impacted by individual characteristics. This national panel study of U.S. adults examined relationships between frequency of visitation to local nature-based recreation settings and LEC, with assessment of differences by race/ethnicity and associations with age and political orientation (N = 556). Results indicate that more frequent visitation to local nature-based recreation settings is associated with significantly greater environmental advocacy and activism, volunteering, literacy, and political ecological citizenship. Age was negatively related to environmental advocacy and activism, volunteering, and literacy, and liberalism was associated with greater participation in all types of LEC, especially political ecological citizenship. Most LEC types did not vary by race/ethnicity, although there were small differences in environmental advocacy and activism, which was higher among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino populations compared to Asian respondents. Findings indicate that frequency of visitation to local nature-based recreation settings is associated with LEC regardless of one's age, political orientation, or race/ethnicity, and thus increasing equitable access to local nature-based recreation, especially among those who have been historically underserved, has the potential to encourage PPA stewardship through LEC, while also contributing to the advancement of procedural environmental justice.

Management implications

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  Environmental stewardship and volunteer organizations should focus on supporting land managers in advancing equity in local parks and protected areas (PPAs) as well as engaging users in these spaces through programs which leverage people's connection with nature at the local scale and provide opportunities for accessible involvement in environmental citizenship activities.

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  Interpretation and education can be used to increase individual's environmental knowledge, while contextualizing such information to places they care about.

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  Enhanced promotion of local opportunities for stewardship among local PPA visitors may be warranted, especially events or programs with few barriers to entry that might encourage greater future participation.