Cultivating Sense of Place through Outdoor Recreation: Implications for Rural Communities in New York

Transcription

1 Cattaraugus County, NY Cultivating Sense of Place through Outdoor Recreation: Implications for Rural Communities in New York L. R. Larson, C. B. Cooper, R. C. Stedman, & D. J. Decker

2 Sense of Place Sense of Place = group of cognitions & affective sentiments people hold regarding a particular locale Farnum et al. 2005; Jorgensen & Stedman 2001

3 How Sense of Place Develops Place Attachment: Psychological, affective, or functional bonds that individuals form with a particular setting Place Attachment Ardoin 2012; Stedman 2008; Wynveen et al Environmental Place Meanings Sociocultural Place Meanings Place Meanings: Cognitive, descriptive, or symbolic statements about what kind of place a setting represents? How do place meanings form?

4 Outdoor Recreation & Place Space becomes place through lived experiences Trentelman 2009; Tuan 1974 Outdoor recreation provides opportunities to interact & build relationships with physical and social environments Burnside 2007; Kyle & Chick 2007; Lewicka 2006; Pitzel et al Are recreation opportunities linked to place attachment?

5 Wildlife Recreation & Place Why wildlife-related recreation? Enduring popularity (USFWS 2012) Important for management & conservation Fosters direct connection with place? Wildlife rec trends (NSRE 2008, Outdoor Foundation 2013, USFWS 2012) Hunting Birding

6 Conceptual Framework Place Attachment Environmental Place Meanings Sociocultural Place Meanings Birding Hunting

7 Research Objective Examine Finger Lakes influence of wildlife-related National Forest, NY recreation on sense of place. Project Partners:

8 Methods Allegany State Park, NY Research Context: Rural counties in upstate NY Method: Survey of rural landowners (mail), hunters (mail) & birders (web) (Summer 2013) Survey Sample Landowners Hunters Birders TOTAL Responses (n) Response Rate (%)* *Telephone follow-up with 150 non-respondents

9 Methods Sense of place measured with adapted versions of existing scales Ardoin 2012, Stedman 2008 Wildlife recreation participation* Avid BIRDING = 190+ days per year (n = 455) 24.1% of rural landowners Avid HUNTING = 19+ days per year (n = 240) 28.1% of rural landowners *Avid birding & hunting were defined based on median participation days for self-identified birders & hunters in rural NY sample. These numbers also reflect mean activity participation rates reported by birders & hunters on national surveys (USFWS 2012). 48 individuals were avid birders &hunters.

10 Results: Sense of Place CFA fit statistics for 3-factor model: RMSEA = 0.07, CFI = 0.93, NNFI = (0.04) Z = 12.8 Environmental Place Meanings Place Attachment 0.60 (0.03) Z = (0.03) Z = 7.9 Sociocultural Place Meanings Place Attachment M = 3.88, 9 items, Cronbach s α = Place Meanings: Environmental M = 4.26, 5 items, Cronbach s α = Place Meanings: Sociocultural Items rated on scale from 1=Strongly disagree to 5=Strongly agree I feel very attached to my local area M = 3.59, 4 items, Cronbach s α = scenic, peaceful, abundant wildlife, outdoor rec opportunities friends/family, good neighbors, people share my values

11 Results: Birding & Hunting Wildlife Recreation Avid BIRDERS (n = 455) Avid HUNTERS (n = 240) Mean Days Birding/yr. (w/ Median) (355) 78.3 (0) Mean Days Hunting/yr. (w/ Median) 6.9 (0) 48.3 (33) Birding as Child (% Yes) Hunting as Child (% Yes) Gender (% Male) Age (Mean in years) Education (% College Degree) Political Orientation (1=Liberal to 5=Conservative) % of Life in County (Mean)

12 Results: Birding & Hunting Wildlife Recreation Avid BIRDERS (n = 455) Avid HUNTERS (n = 240) Perceived Social Belongingness Perceived Environmental Quality Place Meaning - Environmental Place Meaning - Sociocultural Place Attachment Mean ratings; all items rated on a scale from 1=Strongly Disagree to 5=Strongly Agree 1 Single item: I get along well with other people in my community. 2 Single item: The natural environment in my local area is in good shape.

13 Results: Wildlife Rec & Place 0.12 (0.03) Z = 4.6 Percentage of Life in County Perceived Environmental Quality 0.47 (0.03) Z = (0.03) Z = 18.0 Place Attachment R 2 = (0.04) Z = 6.3 Social Belongingness 0.49 (0.03) Z = 18.0 R 2 =0.25 Environmental Place Meanings 0.15 (0.03) Z = 4.8 Birding 0.52 (0.04) Z = 15.4 Sociocultural Place Meanings Hunting R 2 = (0.03) Z = 2.8 SEM model fit statistics: Normed χ 2 < 6.2 RMSEA = 0.07 CFI = 0.90 NNFI = (0.03) Z = 9.5 Youth Birding Youth Hunting 0.43 (0.03) Z = 16.8

14 Conclusions Rural place attachment develops in different ways Birding environmental meanings Hunting sociocultural meanings Both recreation activities may help to foster sense of place Need to acknowledge & understand multifaceted benefits of wildlife-related recreation in rural communities

15 Conservation Implications Emotional connections to place lead to feelings of care, commitment & responsibility Manzo & Perkins 2006; Tuan 1974 Residents connection to place affects community growth & development Lewicka 2006; Pitzel et al. 2007; Schuster et al The strong prediction of place-specific intentions by place attachment supports the proposition that affective, functional, and cognitive bonds with a place may be important precursors to individuals choosing to protect or fight for that place. -Halpenny 2010

16 Conservation Implications Links between recreation & conservation behavior Alam 2011; Bricker & Kerstetter 2000; Kyle et al. 2004; Kudryavtsev et al Are conservation-recreation connections mediated by sense of place?

17 Future Research: Conservation-Recreation Model Birding Hunting Social Belongingness Larson et al. (in prep) Environmental Place Meaning Sociocultural Place Meanings Community Involvement Place Attachment Conservation Behavior Perceived Environmental Quality Environmental Concern Environmental Efficacy Environmental Norms

18 Questions? Otsego Lake, NY Lincoln Larson:

19 Days Birding in Past Year Days Hunting in Past Year Methods: Wildlife recreation participation Avid BIRDING = 190+ days per year (n = 455) Number of Birders US (mean) Rural NY (median) Avid HUNTING = 19+ days per year (n = 240) Number of Hunters US (mean) Rural NY (median)

20 Birding & Hunting: Social Support Mean Ratings Social Structures Supporting Activity Avid Birding Avid Hunting Family Friends Local community Organized groups & clubs Government agencies *All items rated on scale from 1=Not at all important to 5=Extremely important

21 Birding & Hunting: Land Use Mean Ratings Land Use (% of Total Rec Time) Avid Birding Avid Hunting Own land PRIVATE land less than 30 min away PRIVATE land more than 30 min away PUBLIC land less than 30 min away PUBLIC land more than 30 min away

22 Conservation-Recreation Models: PEB Prediction Overview Variable Local PEB Priv. Eco. Engage. Policy Support Env. Citizen. Sphere PEB R Direct Effects Environ Concern Environ Efficacy Community Involvement Place Attachment