1024-0224 - NPS Programmatic 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:

Assessing Hispanic Recreational Use Patterns, Attitudes, and Needs in
Clark County, Nevada

6-3-2011

Over the past 20 years, the Hispanic population in Clark County, NV has increased
remarkably and currently represents approximately 29.3% of the county’s 1.9 million total
inhabitants. The seven million acres of public lands within and surrounding Clark County
provide abundant recreational opportunities for these residents. Although many in the local
Hispanic community visit federal sites, the federal land management agencies continue to
express that visitation rate continue to be low for this under represented population.
Information is needed to understand the limitations of traditional management practices. For
example, most media materials are only available in English, and few staff members have the
skills or ability to communicate with this audience in Spanish. This project will contribute to
the development of an outreach plan designed to better serve member of the Clark County
Hispanic community. A better understanding of this audience will allow the National Park
Service and other federal land management agencies to create culturally appropriate messages
and long-term management plans.
(not to exceed 150 words)

3.

Principal Investigator Contact Information
First Name:
Title:
Affiliation:
Street Address:
City:

4.

Last Name:

Allison

Brody

Project Manager, Conservation Education and Interpretation
Public Lands Institute, Univ. of Nevada, Las Vegas
4505 Maryland Pkwy, Box 452040
Las Vegas

Phone:

702-895-5097

Email:

[email protected]

State:
Fax:

NV

Zip code:

89154-2040

702-895-5166

Park or Program Liaison Contact Information
First Name:

Deborah

Title:

Outdoor Recreation Planner, RTCA Program

Park:

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Park
Office/Division:

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Last Name:

Reardon

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Street Address:

City:

RAJ 277C Box 452040
Las Vegas

State:

Phone:

702-895-4890

Email:

[email protected]

Fax:

NV

Zip code:

89154-2040

702-895-5166

Project Information
5.

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

Lake Mead National Recreation Area,
Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area,
Sloan Canyon,
Desert National Wildlife Refuge Complex,
Corn Creek, Ash Meadows,
Pahranaghat, Spring Mountains National Recreation Area,
Kyle & Lee Canyons. 

6.

Survey Dates:

7.

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

‰

8.

6/21/2011

Mail-Back Questionnaire

‰

(mm/dd/yyyy)

On-Site
Questionnaire

8/31/2011

to

‰

Face-to-Face
Interview

(mm/dd/yyyy)

5 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 nonvisiting 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.
Based on the results of the 2010 U.S. Decennial Census, 29.3% of Clark
County, NV residents are of Hispanic or Latino origin. With these estimates,
research on recreational land use in Clark County would be incomplete without
a specific investigation with regards to Hispanic attitudes and perceptions
concerning recreation and public land use in the area. This collection is
proposed to better understand the reasons behind use and non-use of federal
lands and to gather information that can be used to improve the perception of
natural resource recreation and use by the Hispanic population of Clark County.
This project intends to provide information to the NPS and other land
management agencies needed develop culturally appropriate outreach plans that

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will reinforce sustainable environmental behaviors in Clark County. The
specific objectives of this collection will be to:
• Identify specific agency practices that will create valuable visitor
experiences for the Clark County Hispanic community;
• Determine how federal land management agencies may meet the needs
and expectations of the Hispanic community;
• Understand the barriers that prevent some Clark County Hispanic
residents from visiting public lands;
• Identify, characterize, and understand the Hispanic residents who visit
public lands, as well as assess their current use patterns and
preferences;
• Identify effective communication strategies and the key messages
needed to Hispanic residents about active engagement with public
lands for recreation, learning and discovery, and protection;
understand the level of awareness and perception of rules and
regulations for public lands of the local Hispanic residents. 

9.

Survey Methodology: (a) Respondent universe:
(Use as much space
The respondent universe for this collection will be all Hispanic adults 18 years
as needed; if
of age or older residing in Clark County, NV. According to the 2010 U.S.
necessary include
Decennial Census, there are approximately 410,000 adults of Hispanic or
additional
Latino origin living in Clark County, NV.
explanation on a
separate page.) (b) Sampling plan/procedures:

The increased use of households using cell phones as their primary use
telephone has led to innovative sampling techniques, including
disproportionate stratified Random Digit Dial (RDD) and cell phone sample
hybrid designs. This approach respects the unique challenges inherent to any
telephone survey, and is particularly well suited for surveys of Hispanic
residents. In fact, this method is used by many major polling outfits, including
The Pew Research Center for the People & The Press, which included cell
phone samples in all of its 2008 election polls.
We will use an RDD sample design. The sample will stratify RDD and cell
phone exchanges according to incidence of Hispanic households. An Optimal
Sample Allocation technique will be used (Lopez, 2010). This technique
disproportionately dials telephone exchanges high in Hispanic household
incidence while under sampling exchanges low in Hispanic household
incidence. Survey data will be iteratively post-weighted to Hispanic Latino
population representation in Clark County. The sample will also be screened to
ensure random selection within households by requesting participation from
the adult, 18 years of age or older, within the household whose birthday
follows next in the calendar year. Additionally, the sample will be screened to
ensure that the selected survey participant self-identifies themselves as being of
Hispanic ethnicity.
The sample frame for this survey will be representative of the Hispanic
population in Clark County, NV. A Power Analysis was conducted to

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determine the appropriate sample size, given the total population size and
desired confidence level and confidence interval. The sample size for this
survey will be 384 completed interviews. The initial sample frame size for this
collection will be 1,739; this qualifies for desired sample size (n=384) divided
by the Survey Sampling International (SSI) average Working Phone Rate
(WPR) for Random B samples (.46), a conservative estimate of average
incidence of Hispanic population across all Clark County exchanges given the
disproportionate stratified design (.60) and the suggested OMB response rate
(.80). Applying this formula, the number of initial contacts is expected to be
799 [the sample frame (1,739) multiplied by the WPR (.46)]. Taken further, we
expect that 479 individuals will qualify for inclusion based on the application
of incidence of Hispanic and Latino respondents in the sample frame (.60),
assuming the WPR remains constant within the frame irrespective of race and
ethnicity. Of the qualifying individuals, we anticipate an 80% response rate
(n=384).
A maximum of seven attempts will be made to contact each working, eligible
phone number not identified as an irate refusal. If the initial sample is
exhausted, the sample will be appended by replicating the initial sample
construct in proportion to the number of needed interviews. A response rate
review and non-response bias analysis will be conducted prior to appending the
initial sample frame. The sampling design will be adjusted to account for any
bias source, including adjusting stratums within the sample frame, evaluating
respondent drop off (mid-terminates), recalibrating field times, and analyzing
interviewer techniques. The dual frame will consist of one cell phone sample
frame unit for every three RDD sample frame units. The sample frame design
and data collection approach applied to this survey has been implemented to
great effect by organizations such as the Pew Hispanic Center at the Pew
Research Center for the People and The Press.
(c) Instrument Administration:

The telephone survey instrument will be administered by a team of
professional interviewers. Interviewers will receive training that will include
lessons in cultural sensitivity, proper interviewing techniques, conversion
strategies, and best practices in terms of avoiding extraneous statements and
questions that may prompt or lead respondents or otherwise bias interviews.
The interviewer team will be composed bilingual (English and Spanish)
interviewers. Each telephone interview will last approximately 17 minutes.
The telephone survey will be administered as a Computer Assisted Telephone
Interview (CATI). This system will be used to display pre-programmed
instruments in addition to any fixed-route logic sequences needed for purposes
of real time survey administration. The CATI will assist in monitoring contact,
cooperation, and response rates and to establish other quality control
parameters. Additionally, current CATI systems allow for multilingual survey
administration. Cell phone sample records will not be autodialed from the
CATI system.

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(d) Expected Response Rate/Confidence Intervals:

The survey administration dates and times will be scheduled in order to
maximize the response rates. Telephone interviews will be conducted during
six-hour weekday evening shifts and eight-hour weekend shifts to maximize
contacts and completions.
The research team proposes to complete n=384 interviews with a confidence
level of 95% and a confidence interval of +/-5.0%. There has been a trend of
diminishing response rates among Hispanics which are lower than Whites and
Blacks (Triplett and Abhi-Habib, 2005). Language barriers or an inability to
speak English on the part of the participant, or Spanish on the part of the
interviewer tends to prevent the completion of the survey. This study proposes
to use bilingual interviewers to mitigate any potential language barriers. The
sample frame design recommended for this survey acknowledges the trend of
diminishing response rates and takes rigorous steps to improve coverage of the
study population through implementation of the dual frame strategy. The
disproportionate sampling of both RDD and cell phone exchanges based on
Hispanic household incidence is the optimum approach for increasing
coverage, while at the same time providing greater opportunities for
researchers to monitor response rates in the field.
During the 2008 pre-election polls conducted by The Pew Research Center for
the People and the Press, dual frame designs yielded average contact rates in
the upper 70th percentile. Taking previous research on telephone survey
methodology and cultural variables into account, we aim to achieve similar
results, while improving on the response rates through refusal conversion
techniques and up to seven contacts for eligible, non-irate refusal records.

(e) Strategies for Dealing with Potential Non-Response Bias:
Based on our sampling design, we expect to interview approximately 95
respondents that will be routed through the non-response bias analysis part of
the survey.
To address initial non-response bias, contacted soft refusals, potential non
respondents will be asked three measurement questions: one that will be asked
to compare non-respondents to identified public lands users, and two
demographic questions. Two non-response bias pre-measurement screening
questions will be asked to determine survey eligibility and conformance with
the study universe. These questions will screen non-respondents to ensure they
are 18 years of age or older, and that they identify as Hispanic or Latino before
they are asked the non-response bias analysis questions.
Question 1: Which federally managed public land in Clark County
have you visited most often?
Question 2: Do you have regular access to internet service?

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Question 3: How long have you lived in Clark County?
A non-response bias analysis will be conducted on multiple levels. A post hoc
analysis of non-contact records and completed interviews will be conducted
based on sample frame characteristics. Additionally, a random subsample of
non-respondents who answered the non-response variables will be compared to
completed interviews based on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics
in order to identify and assess any significant differences among respondents
and non-respondents. Further analysis will be conducted using third party data
sources, such as Current Population Survey (CPS) data from the U.S. Census
Bureau to determine any differences between the sample of completed
interviews and the study universe.
(f) Description of Any Pre-Testing and Peer Review of
Methods/Instrument:
The project team conducted four peer reviews of the telephone survey
instrument. Three of the peer reviews were conducted by University of
Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) faculty while one peer review was conducted by a
specialist in Hispanic and Latino outreach and cultural sensitivity under
contract with UNLV. The peer reviews followed comprehensive internal
reviews with representatives of the Public Lands Institute and the Southern
Nevada Agency Partnership to test the logic sequence of survey variables,
clarity of content verbiage, and average interview length.

With an initial contact rate of 80%, we plan to reach least 799 individuals by
telephone. We expect that the initial contact time will be at least three minutes
per person (n=799 x 3 minutes = 40 hours). For those who are available and
willing to participate (n=384), an additional 17 minutes will be required to
complete the full survey by telephone (384 responses x 17 minutes = 109 hours).
The burden for the non- respondents in the sample was calculated by
determining that the 95 respondents who did not agree to take the full survey
will be asked a sample of questions to complete a non-respondent survey. The
burden for non-respondent survey is estimated to take 5 minutes per respondent
resulting in an additional 8 hours to be combined to the total burden for this
collection of 157 hours (see table below).

10.Total Number Responses
Initial Contacts
Respondents completing
the survey
Expected number of
Non-respondents

12. Burden Hour

11. Estimated Time to Complete (Mins)

799
384
95

Initial Contact
Full Survey
Non-response Bias Survey

3
17
5

Initial Contact
Complete Survey
Non-response Bias
Survey

40
109

8

TOTAL: 157 Hours

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13.

Reporting Plan:

Survey results will be entered into a database for use by Southern Nevada
Agency Partnership (SNAP). The database will aid in the creation of a step-bystep resource guide, containing information and recommendations for Hispanic
Outreach. This resource guide will be distributed to SNAP Interagency teams,
SNAP Conservation Education staff, and partner organizations. Principal
Investigator Allison Brody will provide a narrative report describing survey
analysis and results to the SNAP Board and agency personnel. A copy of the
survey report will be archived with the NPS Social Science Program for
inclusion in the Social Science Studies Collection. This collection effort is not
intended to generalize findings beyond the Clark County Hispanic and Latino
population. In the event our collection design does not yield a response rate
exceeding 50%, we will not attempt to generalize findings beyond those who
participated in the survey.

Bibliography
Chavez, D.J. 2000. Invite, Include, and Involve! Racial groups, ethnic groups, and leisure. In Allison, M.T. and
Schneider, I.E. (eds.). Diversity and the Recreation Profession: Organizational Perspectives. State College, PA:
Venture Publishing, pp. 179-191.
Chavez, D.J. 2002. Adaptive management in outdoor recreation: serving Hispanics in southern California. Western J. of
Applied Forestry, 17(3): 129-133.
Lopez, M., Taylor P. (2010). Latinos and the 2010 Census: The Foreign Born are More Positive. Washington DC: Pew
Hispanic Center, 2010.
Morgan, D. (1997) Focus groups as qualitative research. 2nd ed. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications
Roberts, N.S. 2007. Visitor/non-visitor use constraints: exploring ethnic minority experiences and perspectives. General
Technical Report, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. San Francisco,
CA: San Francisco State University.
Tierney, P.T., R.F. Dahl, and D.J. Chavez. 1998. Cultural diversity of Los Angeles County residents using undeveloped
natural areas. 1998. USDA Forest Service Research Paper PSW-RP-236.
Triplett, T. and Abi-Habib, N. (2005). Socio-demographic study of telephone survey non-respondents. Presented at the
research meeting of the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology, Arlington, VA.

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