Ethnicity, Race, and Outdoor Recreation. A Review of Trends, Policy, and Research

Abstract

The fourth section presents an overview of major research issues in studies of ethnicity and recreation. These include issues of "underparticipation" and "underutilization" by minority groups of outdoor recreation resources, as well as comparative studies of differences in recreation style. This overview also describes the process of cultural assimilation (or acculturation) and its possible effect on recreation behavior and style. The next three parts of the report present expanded reviews of the major research issues summarized in the third section. Separate sections are devoted to the literature on underparticipation and Chapter 1 Introduction

Serving culturally diverse visitors to forests in California: a resource guide

“…Although California's historically high rates of growth have mellowed into a more modest 1.1 to 1.2 percent annually in recent years, the state is still projected to add 1.3 million people during the 3-year period between 2008 and2010 (California Legislative Analyst, n.d.) It is reported that Latinos will account for nearly two-thirds of California's total population growth between 2007 and2010 (California Legislative Analyst, n.d.). Yet, much of our federal outdoor recreation infrastructure (e.g., trails and trailheads, access points, campgrounds, visitor facilities) was built for White visitors and may need to be renovated and repositioned to serve the needs of culturally diverse visitors to California's national forests.…”

Managing Urban Parks for a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Clientele

“…Although past ndings show variation both within and among individuals and groups, there is a general tendency for White recreationists to travel further and visit urban and wildland parks and natural areas more frequently than African Americans (e.g., Dwyer, 1994;Scott & Munson, 1994;Washburne, 1978). Travel and use patterns by individuals of Latino, Asian, or American Indian origin are less studied and seem to vary across sites and studies (e.g., Chavez, 2001), but one common thread in studies of Latino recreationists is a generally larger and more age-diverse social group (Gramann, 1996). These differences raise questions about various dimensions of access to recreation sites.…”

Managing outdoor recreation in California: visitor contact studies

“…Because the probability of participating in certain types of outdoor recreation activities is influenced by a person's race and ethnicity, it is important to be aware of geographic patterns as well as major trends in the growth of different ethnic groups (Gramann 1996).…”

“…Although Asian-origin and African-American groups should increase significantly in numbers over the next 25 years, the ethnic transformation of the United States is primarily a result of the rapid growth of its Hispanic population (Gramann 1996). This growth is being experienced in a relatively restricted geographic region, composed of states adjacent to the United States-Mexico border.…”

“…Gramann (1996) suggested that some sources of difficulty in the relationships between recreation resource managers and some immigrant groups may be less an issue in subsequent years, as the cultural assimilation of these groups progresses. This hypothesis can be tested.…”