Expedited Form

National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
Social Science Program

Expedited Approval for NPS-Sponsored Public Surveys
1.

Project Title ⎢
Submission
Date:

2.

Abstract:

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Backcountry Visitor Survey

The purpose of this project is to conduct an onsite survey of visitors in the Cosby area of
Great Smoky Mountains National Park to collect information concerning visitors’
experiences and attitudes about managing natural and human-caused sounds in the park’s
backcountry areas. The survey instrument is designed to collect information about
soundscape-related indicators and standards of quality, the sounds visitors hear in the Cosby
area of the park, and the effects of those sounds on their experiences in the park. The survey
instrument will be administered on ten randomly selected days between May 1 and August
31, 2009. The information collected in this study will inform current National Park Service
planning and management efforts by providing visitor use and user characteristics, and
potential indicators and standards of quality for soundscape conditions in the parks.
(not to exceed 150 words)

3.

Principal Investigator Contact Information
First Name:

Senior Project Consultant

Affiliation:

Resource Systems Group

City:
Phone:
Email:
4.

Last Name:

Steve

Title:

Street Address:

Lawson

55 Railroad Row
White River Junction
802-295-4999

State:
Fax:

VT

Zip code:

05001

802-295-1006

[email protected]

Park or Program Liaison Contact Information
First Name:

Last Name:

Kurt

Title:

Scientist

Park:

NA

Park
Office/Division:

Natural Sounds Program Center

Street Address:

1201 Oakridge Drive, Suite 100

City:
Phone:
Email:

9/12/2008

Fort Collins
970-267-2102
[email protected]

State:
Fax:

CO

Fristrup

Zip code:

970-267-2109

80525-5596

Project Information
5.

Park(s) For Which Research
is to be Conducted:

6.

Survey Dates:

7.

Type of Information Collection Instrument (Check ALL that Apply)
‰

‰

8.

Mail-Back
Questionnaire

Great Smoky Mountains National Park
05/01/2009

(mm/dd/yyyy)

™ On-Site
Questionnaire

‰

to

Face-toFace
Interview

08/31/2009

‰

(mm/dd/yyyy)

Telephone
Survey

‰

Focus
Groups

Other (explain)
Survey Justification:
(Use as much space as
needed; if necessary
include additional
explanation on a
separate page.)

Social science research in support of park planning and management is mandated
in the NPS Management Policies 2006 (Section 8.11.1, “Social Science Studies”).
The NPS pursues a policy that facilitates social science studies in support of the
NPS mission to protect resources and enhance the enjoyment of present and future
generations (National Park Service Act of 1916, 38 Stat 535, 16 USC 1, et seq.).
NPS policy mandates that social science research will be used to provide an
understanding of park visitors, the non-visiting public, gateway communities and
regions, and human interactions with park resources. Such studies are needed to
provide a scientific basis for park planning, development, operations,
management, education, and interpretive activities.
Protecting natural sounds is an important goal set by the National Park Service in
management policy 4.9:
The Service will restore to the natural condition wherever possible those park
soundscapes that have become degraded by unnatural sounds (noise), and will protect
natural soundscapes from unacceptable impacts. Using appropriate management
planning, superintendents will identify what levels and types of unnatural sound
constitute acceptable impacts on park natural soundscapes.
The frequencies, magnitudes, and durations of acceptable levels of unnatural sound
will vary throughout a park, being generally greater in developed areas. In and
adjacent to parks, the Service will monitor human activities that generate noise that
adversely affects park soundscapes, including noise caused by mechanical or
electronic devices. The Service will take action to prevent or minimize all noise that
through frequency, magnitude, or duration adversely affects the natural soundscape or
other park resources or values, or that exceeds levels that have been identified through
monitoring as being acceptable to or appropriate for visitor uses at the sites being
monitored. (National Park Service, 2006, p.56).

Because noise intrusions can interfere with ecological systems and visitor
enjoyment in parks, the NPS has been measuring natural ambient and unnatural
sound levels at national parks for over twenty years. However, few studies have
been able to connect acoustical measurements to actual visitor response data. To
address this, the proposed study will measure visitor response to audio clips
containing varying levels of natural ambient and human-caused sounds endemic
to the park. The survey instrument, sampling protocols, and analysis methods are
similar to soundscape-related studies conducted at a number of other national park
units (Lawson et al., 2007a, 2007b; Newman et al., 2006; Newman et al., 2005;
Pilcher et al., 2008). The information collected in this study will enhance current
park planning and management efforts by providing visitor use and user
characteristics, assessing the impacts of human and mechanical noise on visitors’
experiences in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and identifying potential
indicators and standards of quality for soundscape conditions in the park.

9.

Survey Methodology: (Use
as much space as needed;
if necessary include

(a) Respondent universe:
The respondent universe will be all visitors, 18 years of age and older, to the
Cosby area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park between May 1 and August

additional explanation on a
separate page.)

31, 2009. The survey sampling period coincides with one of the peak periods of
visitor use in the study area.
(b) Sampling plan/procedures:
During each sampling day two trained surveyors will be stationed at the Gabes
Mountain Trail trailhead between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. When the sampling
period begins, the first surveyor will approach the first visitor group to exit the
site and ask a randomly selected member of the group (person over the age of 18
whose birthday is closest to the current date) to participate in the survey. When
the first surveyor has completed his/her contact with the visitor group, he/she will
ask a randomly selected member of the next exiting visitor group to participate in
the survey. This process will continue throughout the sampling day. Visitors will
complete the on-site questionnaire in the presence of the second surveyor, who
will answer any questions that arise. In question 11, respondents will be asked to
render judgments about recordings that they listen to using a portable audio player
and noise-cancelling headphones. This technique has been used successfully in
previous NPS studies at Muir Woods National Monument, as well as Haleakala
and Hawaii Volcanoes National Parks. In particular, respondents will listen to
and evaluate a set of five recordings that vary from containing only natural sounds
endemic to the park to those containing substantial human-caused sounds, such as
vehicles and human voices. The recordings will be developed from acoustical data
recorded in the park prior to the study and mixed by a bioacoustical engineer from
the NPS Natural Sounds Program Center. Respondents will be asked to evaluate
the extent to which they consider the sounds in each recording to be appropriate
for the study area, and how closely each recording resembles the sounds they
heard during their visit to the study area that day. A series of short breaks for the
surveyors will be designed into the sampling schedule.
(c) Instrument administration:
Exiting visitors will be read the following script:
“Excuse me, sir/ma'am. We're conducting a study for Great Smoky Mountains
National Park to better understand visitors’ experiences and attitudes about
managing natural and human-caused sounds in the park. Participation is
voluntary, and all responses will be kept anonymous.
“Has any member of your group participated in this survey before?”
If YES: “Thank you for your time. I hope you enjoy your visit.”
If NO: ”Would you be willing to spend a few minutes to answer some important
questions regarding your visit here?"
If YES: “Thank you.”
If NO: “I understand. I hope you enjoy your visit.”
Visitors who agree to participate will be sent to the on-site survey station where
they will be administered the survey instrument. Respondents will be instructed
to complete the questionnaire on-site and to address any questions to the surveyor.
The surveyor will collect completed questionnaires.
(d) Expected response rate/confidence levels:

Based on response rates from similar sound surveys of national park visitors
conducted by the principal investigator (Haleakala National Park 64% and Hawaii
Volcanoes National Park 62%), coupled with a response rate of 90% for a 2006
survey of visitors conducted by the principal investigator in the Cosby area of
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a 70% response rate is expected. A total
of 285 visitors will be contacted for the survey, and it is expected that
approximately 200 visitors will respond to the questionnaire. Based on this
sample size, there will be 95% confidence that study findings will be accurate to

within 6.75 percentage points.
(e) Strategies for dealing with potential non-response bias:
The number of refusals will be recorded, reported, and screened for non-response
bias (see Attachment 2: Survey Log). Data from the visitor survey portion of the
study will be analyzed for non-response bias by comparing group characteristics
(group size, group type, time of visit) to non-respondent group characteristics
gathered on the survey log. Results of the non-response analysis will be reported,
and any implications for management will be discussed in the final report.
(f) Description of any pre-testing and peer review of the methods and/or
instrument (recommended):

The questions included in the questionnaire have been designed and reviewed by
the principal investigator, research staff and graduate students, scientists from
other universities with expertise in survey research, and staff from the National
Park Service Natural Sounds Program. The substance and format of the questions
contained in the survey instrument are similar to questions administered at a
number of other national park areas (Lawson et al., 2007a, 2007b; Newman et al.,
2006; Newman et al., 2005; Pilcher et al., 2008), and findings from such questions
have been published in peer-reviewed academic journals.
10.

Total Number of
Initial Contacts |
Expected Respondents:

13.

Reporting Plan:

285

200

1
1.

Estimated Time to
Complete Initial
Contact | Instrument
(mins.):

1

15

12
.

Total
Burden
Hours:

55

A technical study report will summarize results and management
recommendations. A copy of the report will be archived with the National Park
Service Social Science Program for inclusion in the Social Science Studies
Collection. Results will be summarized and reported as means, standard
deviations, and frequency distributions, in accordance with variables’ scales of
measurement.

Lawson, S., Kiser, B., Hockett, K., Reigner, N., Howard, J., Ingram, A., & Dymond, S. (2007a). Social science research to
inform soundscape management in Haleakala National Park: Study completion report. Blacksburg: Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University, College of Natural Resources.
Lawson, S., Hockett, K., Kiser, B., Reigner, N., Ingram, A., Howard, J., & Dymond, S. (2007b). Social science research to
inform soundscape management in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park: Study completion report. Blacksburg: Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and State University, College of Natural Resources.
Newman, P., Pilcher, E., & Manning, R. (2005). Muir Woods National Monument- Draft Phase I Soundscape Report.
Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO.
Newman, P., Pilcher, E., & Stack, D. (2006). Yosemite National Park Phase I Soundscape Report. Colorado State University,
Fort Collins, CO.
Pilcher, E., Newman, P., & Manning, R. (2008). Understanding and managing experiential aspects of soundscapes at Muir
Woods National Monument. Environmental Management.