2025-12-30
Susan Williams, Susan Robinett, John Sneed, Angelique Edwards, Allison Bean
This study examined the disconnect between perceived needs of tourism stakeholders and available support structures in West Virginia. It focused on identifying sources of tourism development assistance and stakeholder perceptions of the role of Convention and Visitors Bureaus (CVBs). Although tourism scholarship offers robust conceptual frameworks, these models have not translated into practical tools for practitioners, leaving stakeholders uncertain about where to seek guidance. Using convenience and snowball sampling, a survey was administered to 187 tourism professionals across the state, exploring their relationships with businesses, support organizations, CVBs, policymakers, educators, and communities. Findings revealed that most respondents did not perceive having a strong support system for tourism-related questions or needs. This reflects a broader systemic issue: tourism is rarely understood as a holistic, interdependent ecosystem. While theory emphasizes integrated systems, stakeholder comprehension and application remain limited. Encouragingly, initiatives such as the Tourism Ecosystem Sub-Committee show promise for fostering collaboration.
2025-11-07
Ann Morgan Hawthorne, Carla Barbieri
Infusing creativity in agritourism has become increasingly important to distinguish farm offerings and respond to the growing desire of tourists seeking immersive, meaningful, and authentic experiences. Despite this importance, the extent to which agritourism providers are leveraging their creativity is not yet fully understood, limiting potential spillover benefits to providers (e.g., repeat visitation) and society (e.g., heritage preservation, rural revitalization). Building upon Creative Placemaking and Creative Tourism frameworks, we developed a conceptual Creative Agritourism framework to capture the infusion of creativity (operationalized as sense of localness, authenticity, and co-creation) across the four components of agritourism (offerings, meaningful interactions, setting, repurposing). This conceptual framework will be validated by collecting data from highly creative agritourism operations in North Carolina (USA). Qualitative data will be used to develop the Creative Agritourism Rubric that will guide practitioners (providers and supporting agencies) in maximizing their creativity, helping to enhance overall distinctiveness and appeal.
2025-11-07
Tatiana Iretskaia
This research note explores how emotionally intense wildlife encounters can produce lasting personal and environmental impacts. Using the case of swim-with-whales tourism and based on in-depth qualitative interviews conducted at least one year after the encounter, the study examines how such experiences are remembered and integrated over time, with specific focus on the lasting impacts of nature-induced awe on attitudes toward self and the environment. Findings suggest that awe functioned as a powerful pathway to nature connectedness, personal empowerment, a reorientation of life priorities, and sustained pro-environmental behavior. The findings point to several actionable lessons and acknowledge ethical dilemmas surrounding human-wildlife interactions. Specifically, such experiences often remain an elite and exclusive activity—put simply, they are financially costly and logistically inaccessible to most. This presents both a challenge and opportunity for future practice: can we design emotionally resonant, awe-inspiring experiences in more accessible settings?
2025-11-01
Kimberly T. Centers, Edwin Gómez
This study developed and validated the Perceived Benefits of Municipal Parks (PBMP) Scale, a 7-item unidimensional measure of residents' perceptions of park benefits. Data collected from 309 residents across three neighborhoods in Norfolk, Virginia, underwent structural equation modeling and reliability testing. The PBMP Scale demonstrated strong psychometric properties and utility for both practitioners and researchers. Analyses revealed significant correlations between PBMP scores, and park use, access, and overall perception. Gender and user/non-user differences were found in PBMP scores, while no differences emerged across neighborhoods or racial groups. The scale provides a quantitative tool for assessing park benefits, evaluating equity, justifying investments, and informing evidence-based park management strategies. The PBMP Scale's ability to capture residents' perceptions of park benefits offers valuable insights for urban planners and policymakers. Future research could explore how PBMP scores relate to other quality of life indicators.
2025-10-10
William L. Rice
This research note presents an application of a recently developed theoretical framework for allocating scarce recreation resources—in this case, trailhead parking—in a fair and data-driven manner. Drawing from this theoretical framework, developed by university and agency researchers, this study operationalizes a set of six allocation design principles—equitable, flexible, accessible, balanced, data-driven, and meets agency requirements—within the context of Yellowstone National Park. Results reveal varying levels of support for rationing mechanisms and significant variation in preferred booking windows based on visitors’ proximity to the park. By grounding a hypothetical design in both empirical data and new theoretical guidance, this work fills a gap in recreation allocation research. It also provides a replicable model for managers seeking to implement allocation systems that are not only operationally viable but also fair—highlighting the importance of integrating data with theory in applied visitor use management.