Increasing Public Involvement to Reduce Depreciative Behavior in Recreation Settings

Abstract

A range of depreciative behaviors, such as vandalism, theft, and other rule violations, occurs in recreation settings. Managers and users have expressed concern about the occurrence of these problems and their impacts on the natural environment, public and private property, and the recreationists’ enjoyment of the area (Driessen, 1978; U.S. Department of the Interior, 1978; Downing and Moutsinas, 1978; Alfano and Magill, 1976; Clark et al., 1971b). Some recent estimates indicate the costly impact of some of these problems on agency budgets. The USDA Forest Service, for example, reports that vandalism and littering in the National Forests cost tax-payers over $7 million in 1974 (USDA Forest Service, 1975). The Bureau of Land Management, with fewer and more widely dispersed facilities, reports that vandalism costs $250,000 per year (Alfano and Magill, 1976). The Seattle, Washington, Parks and Recreation Department estimated that vandalism cost $236,000 during 1976 (U.S. Department of the Interior, 1977). The problems of vandalism and other violations of rules permeates the entire recreation opportunity spectrum from urban parks to Wilderness Areas (Clark, et al., 1971b; Boston Parks and Recreation Commission, 1978; Hendee et al., 1978; Shafer and Lucas, 1978).