Visitor Use and Threshold Testing at Theodore Roosevelt National Park (THRO)

OMB Number: XXXX-XXXX Expiration Date: X/XX/20XX

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Visitor Survey

Thresholds Questionnaire

2018

To be completed by field staff:

ID ______ Travel party ID________ Tracker number ________ Date _____

Location ___________ Field staff____________

PAPERWORK REDUCTION and PRIVACY ACT STATEMENT: The Paperwork Reduction Act requires us to tell you why we are collecting this information, how we will use it, and whether or not you have to respond. We are authorized by the National Park Service Protection Interpretation and research in System (54 USC §100702) to collect this information. The information collected for this survey builds upon previous work conducted at Theodore Roosevelt National Park that identified visitors indicators of quality. The data collected in this study will assist mangers in understanding visitors thresholds for crowded conditions at specific location within the park. Your responses to this collection are completely voluntary and will remain anonymous. You can end the process at any time and will not be penalized in any way for choosing to do so. All contact information collected for the purpose of the follow-up survey will be destroyed at the end of the collection period and no personal identifiable records will be maintained or stored for any purposes. Data collected will only be reported in aggregates and no individually identifiable responses will be reported. A Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and you are not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB Control Number (1024-0224). We estimate that it will take about 15 minutes to complete and return this on-site questionnaire. You may send comments concerning the burden estimates or any aspect of this information collection to: Dr. Ryan Sharp, Assistant Professor, Park Management and Tourism, 221 Throckmorton, Manhattan, KS 66506, Kansas State University (address) or [email protected] (email); or Phadrea Ponds NPS Information Collection Coordinator at [email protected] (email).

SECTION 1: YOUR VISITS TO

THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK

1. Please tell us about your past visitation to Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

1. Including today, how many days in the last month (30 days) have you visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park? ___________

1. If you visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park for only one day, how many hours did you spend in the park? ________hours

2. Including today, how many days in the last year (12 months) have you visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park? ___________

3. Including today, how many years (total) have you visited Theodore Roosevelt National Park? _____________

SECTION 2: YOUR OPINIONS ABOUT THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK

2. Using the scale below, please rate the level of crowding you experienced at Theodore Roosevelt National Park today. Please circle the number that best matches your response:

Not Crowded	Barely Crowded	Slightly Crowded	Moderately Crowded	Crowded	Very Crowded	Extremely Crowded
-3	-2	-1	0	1	2	3

3. Please indicate if you have experienced any of the following during this visit or a previous visit to Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

	Experienced during a previous visit to the park	Experienced during current visit to the park
Chose not to visit the park because there were too many visitors	
Chose not to visit your desired places in the park because there were too many visitors		
Chose not to engage in your desired activities because there were too many visitors		
Changed the times or days that you visited the park because there were too many visitors		

SECTION 3: YOUR EXPERIENCE AT THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK

4. Please rate each photograph in Binder 1 by indicating how acceptable you think it is based on the conditions displayed. A rating of -4 means the conditions displayed are “very unacceptable”, and a rating of +4 means the conditions displayed are “very acceptable”. (Circle one number for each photograph.)

	Very Unacceptable	Unacceptable	Moderately Unacceptable	Slightly Unacceptable	Neither acceptable or unacceptable	Slightly Acceptable	Moderately Acceptable	Acceptable	Very Acceptable
Photo 1	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 2	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 3	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 4	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 5	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4

1. Which photograph looks most like the conditions you experienced today during this visit?

Photo number: _____

2. Considering the conditions in Binder 1 that you indicated you experienced today, please rate the degree that those conditions either increased or decreased the quality of your park experience.

	Extremely decreased the quality of my experience	Decreased the quality of my experience	Did not improve or detract from the quality of my experience	Increased the quality of my experience	Extremely increased the quality of my experience
The conditions in Binder 1 that I experienced today					

3. Which photo (if any) displays the conditions where you believe park managers should take action to improve the conditions displayed in Binder 1?

Photo number: _____

OR

 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that park managers should take action to improve the conditions displayed in Binder 1

4. Which photograph (if any) displays the conditions that are so unacceptable that you would no longer use the area displayed in Binder 1?

Photo number: _____

OR

 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that I would no longer use the area in Binder 1

1. Which photograph (if any) in Binder 1 shows the highest level of use you believe that park managers should allow? In other words, at what point should visitor use be limited? (If use should not be limited at any point represented by the photographs, or not restricted at all, you may indicate that)

Photo number: _____	OR	 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that visitor use should be limited
	OR	 Visitor use should never be limited

5. Please rate each photograph on Binder 2 by indicating how acceptable you think it is based on the conditions displayed. A rating of -4 means the conditions displayed are “very unacceptable”, and a rating of +4 means the conditions displayed are “very acceptable”. (Circle one number for each photograph.)

	Very Unacceptable	Unacceptable	Moderately Unacceptable	Slightly Unacceptable	Neither acceptable or unacceptable	Slightly Acceptable	Moderately Acceptable	Acceptable	Very Acceptable
Photo 1	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 2	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 3	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 4	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
Photo 5	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4

5. Which photograph looks most like the conditions you experienced today during this visit?

Photo number: _____

6. Considering the conditions in Binder 2 that you indicated you experienced today, please rate the degree that those conditions either increased or decreased the quality of your park experience.

	Extremely decreased the quality of my experience	Decreased the quality of my experience	Did not improve or detract from the quality of my experience	Increased the quality of my experience	Extremely increased the quality of my experience
The conditions in Binder 2 that I experienced today					

7. Which photo (if any) displays the conditions where you believe park managers should take action to improve the conditions displayed in Binder 2?

Photo number: _____

OR

 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that park managers should take action to improve the area in Binder 2

8. Which photograph (if any) displays the conditions that are so unacceptable that you would no longer use the area in Binder 2?

Photo number: _____

OR

 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that I would no longer use the area in Binder 2

2. Which photograph (if any) in Binder 2 shows the highest level of use that you believe park managers should allow? In other words, at what point should visitor use be limited? (If use should not be limited at any point represented by the photographs, or not restricted at all, you may indicate that)

Photo number: _____	OR	 None of the conditions in the photographs are so unacceptable that visitor use should be limited
	OR	 Visitor use should never be limited

6. We would like to know your opinions about the number of large animals that you viewed within one-hour at Theodore Roosevelt National Park during this visit. For this question, a “large animal” is considered a bison, elk, deer, sheep, etc. Using the scale below, please rate the acceptability of the number of large animals that you viewed within one-hour at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. A rating of -4 means the number of large animals viewed in one hour is “very unacceptable”, and a rating of +4 means the number of large animals viewed in one hour is “very acceptable”. (Circle one number for each photograph.)

	Very Unacceptable	Unacceptable	Moderately Unacceptable	Slightly Unacceptable	Neither acceptable or unacceptable	Slightly Acceptable	Moderately Acceptable	Acceptable	Very Acceptable
0 large animals viewed within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
2 large animals viewed within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
4 large animals viewed within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
6 large animals viewed within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
8 large animals viewed within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
10 large animals seen within one-hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4

1. During an average hour of your park experience, which condition listed below is most like what you experienced today?

0 large animals viewed within one-hour	6 large animals viewed within one-hour
2 large animals viewed within one-hour	8 large animals viewed within one-hour
4 large animals viewed within one-hour	10 large animals viewed within one-hour
Other: Please specify the average number of animals seen within one-hour

2. Considering the average number of large animals that you viewed within one-hour at Theodore Roosevelt National Park during your visit today, please rate the degree that those conditions either increased or decreased the quality of your park experience.

	Extremely decreased the quality of my experience	Decreased the quality of my experience	Did not improve or detract from the quality of my experience	Increased the quality of my experience	Extremely increased the quality of my experience
Average number of large animals seen within one-hour at Theodore Roosevelt National Park during your visit today					

3. Which condition listed below do you believe would require park managers to take action to change the wildlife viewing experience at Theodore Roosevelt National Park?

0 large animals viewed within one-hour	6 large animals viewed within one-hour
2 large animals viewed within one-hour	8 large animals viewed within one-hour
4 large animals viewed within one-hour	10 large animals viewed within one-hour
None of these conditions required park managers to take action to change the wildlife viewing experience

4. Which condition listed below is so unacceptable that you would no longer visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park?

0 large animals viewed within one-hour		6 large animals viewed within one-hour
2 large animals viewed within one-hour		8 large animals viewed within one-hour
4 large animals viewed within one-hour		10 large animals viewed within one-hour
 None of these conditions are so unacceptable that I would no longer use the area

7. We would like to know how long you think it is acceptable to have to wait for parking at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Please rate the acceptability of each of the following lengths of waiting times for parking. A rating of -4 means the time is “very unacceptable”, and a rating of +4 means the time is “very acceptable”. (Circle one number for each line.)

	Very Unacceptable	Unacceptable	Moderately Unacceptable	Slightly Unacceptable	Neither acceptable or unacceptable	Slightly Acceptable	Moderately Acceptable	Acceptable	Very Acceptable
No waiting time for parking	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
5 minutes	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
10 minutes	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
20 minutes	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
30 minutes	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
1 hour	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4
2 hours	-4	-3	-2	-1	0	+1	+2	+3	+4

1. How long of a wait is so unacceptable that you would no longer visit Theodore Roosevelt National Park?

5 minutes	30 minutes
10 minutes	1 hour
20 minutes	2 hours
None of these conditions are so unacceptable that I would no longer use the area

2. On average, how long did you wait to find parking on this visit?

0 minutes		30 minutes
5 minutes		1 hour
10 minutes		2 hours
 20 minutes

3. Considering the average time you waited to find parking during this visit, please rate the degree that the average wait time either increased or decreased the quality of your park experience.

	Extremely decreased the quality of my experience	Decreased the quality of my experience	Did not improve or detract from the quality of my experience	Increased the quality of my experience	Extremely increased the quality of my experience
Average wait time to find parking					

4. In your opinion, what length of wait time would require management to take action?

 5 minutes	 30 minutes
 10 minutes	 1 hour
 20 minutes	 2 hours
 None of these conditions are so unacceptable that it would require management action

8. SECTION 4: ABOUT YOU

   What is your zip code? ____________

9. What year were you born? ________________

10. What is your gender? (select one)  Male  Female  Do not wish to answer

11. What is the highest level of school you have completed? (select one)

12.  Less than high school	 Some college	 Graduate or professional degree
     Some high school	 Two-year college graduate	 Do not wish to answer
     High school graduate	 Four-year college graduate

    For you only, are you Hispanic or Latino? YES  NO

13. What is your race? (select all that apply)

 American Indian or Alaska Native	 Hawaiian or Pacific Islander	 Do not wish to answer
 Black or African American	 White	 Asian

14. Which category best describes your total household income in U.S. dollars during 2017 before taxes? (select one)

 Less than $24,999	 $50,000 to $74,999	 $150,000 to $199,999
 $25,000 to $34,999	 $75,000 to $99,999	 $200,000 or more
 $35,000 to $49,999	 $100,000 t $149,999	 Do not wish to answer

Thank you for your help with this survey!

Please return it to the person who gave it to you.