TRENDS
Recreation Roundtable Releases Survey People appear to be "streamlining" their recreation menus, participating more in fewer activities. The Recreation Roundtable—a national organization comprised of chief executives of America's top recreation companies including The Coleman Company, L.L. Bean, REI, KOA, Walt Disney Attractions and Times Mirror Magazines—has surveyed the American public for three years on the motivations for recreation participation, satisfaction levels with current recreation activities and barriers to recreation participation. Using this data, the Roundtable has developed a Recreation Quality Index (RQI) (base year 1994=100) to indicate changes in public attitudes regarding key recreation factors. Following are key findings from the organization's 1996 Recreation Roundtable Survey: Outdoor Recreation in America, a study conducted by Roper Starch Worldwide. Complete results of the survey can be obtained by contacting the Recreation Roundtable, 1225 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 450, Washington, DC 20005, 202/682-9530. The Roundtable's 1996 Recreation Quality Index (RQI) reflects a continued, though modest, gain in the public's perception of overall quality of outdoor recreation in America. The 1996 RQI stands at 109 versus 100 in 1994 and 107 in 1995. The public perceives recreation opportunities locally and at vacation destinations to be essentially flat, with no measurable change since the Roundtable's initial 1994 survey. In 1995, we saw a significant climb in recreation participation at the highest levels —those who participate once per month or even more frequently, in 1996, more than half of all Americans again reported engaging in recreation at least monthly, but the percentage did not grow further. While the ranking of favorite recreation opportunities remained nearly unchanged in 1996, we saw declines in participation in 25 of 30 activities we track. A possible explanation for the drop is that people appear to be "streamlining" their recreation menus, participating more in fewer activities. One in three Americans took an outdoor recreation vacation over the past year—identical to the percentage in 1995. Satisfaction levels with recreation experiences tell an interesting tale. In general, satisfaction with recreation experiences locally is declining, including perceptions of availability of activities and instruction, quality of service provided by park staff and the value for fees paid. In contrast, satisfaction with vacation experiences has climbed. For the first time, more 42 • Illinois Parks & Recreation • July/August 1996 than half of the survey respondents rated the amount of activities and instruction available as either excellent or very good, and quality and value assessments rose even more sharply. We do not ask about who provides the services at these sites—public agency or private company. This may be an area of inquiry for 1997. Outdoor recreation is contributing even more than before to satisfying people's personal needs. This is important because it reinforces the key finding of the benchmark 1994 research which found that Americans who regularly engage in recreation are substantially more content with their lives than other Americans.
RQI is comprised of three component measurements: opportunity, participation and satisfaction. The highest opportunity score is for RV camping followed by off-road bicycling and motorboating. The highest participation scores are for off-road bicycling, downhill skiing, horseback riding and canoeing/kayaking. The top satisfaction scores come from wildlife watchers, RV'ers and hikers. Overall, the top RQI ratings come from off-road bicyclists, horseback riders and canoeists/kayakers. Less than one in three of those earning less than $15,000 participate at least monthly in outdoor recreation, versus two in three of those with earnings of $50,000 and above. "The main challenge for those involved in recreation— whether in industry, government or recreationists themselves— is to broaden participation among relatively disadvantaged segments of the American public since we know that participation brings with it prospects for a more happy and contented society." For the first time in 1996, we asked questions regarding awareness and use of recreational facilities managed by federal agencies. We learned that 72 percent of all respondents know of areas managed by the National Park Service while 62 percent know of specific U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service areas and 59 percent know of Forest Service sites. Seven in ten Americans report no visits to federal recreation areas in the past year. Thus, the large number of estimated visits to federal sites—some two billion in 1995, according to agency counts—represents a large number of visits by a relatively small group of Americans. The RQI for Generation X'ers climbed substantially in 1996 to 116 from 103, nearly catching the RQI for the core "Boomer" group of 30- to 44-year-olds (120). X'ers lag in perceptions of opportunity and satisfaction but report the highest participation levels. Americans in and around mid-sized cities continue to report the highest RQI (116) but substantial gains have occurred since 1994 in both our largest cities and in rural communities (102 and 108. respectively, for 1996 versus 84 and 89 in 1994). Outdoor Recreation in America 1996 is based upon a national sampling of 2,000 adult Americans in late March and early April. All questions were asked in-person, the same methodology employed in the Roundtable's 1994 and 1995 surveys. The 1996 survey was funded in part by the Bureau of Land Management. Illinois Parks & Recreation • July/August 1996 • 43 |
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