Visitors Experiences in Different Zoo Exhibits

Yılmaz, Serap; Düzenli, Tuğba; Çiğdem, Abdullah

doi:10.12944/cwe.12.1.03

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…We also found that the more positive visitor attitudes were toward penguins, their welfare, the enclosure, experience with the penguins and learning, the higher visitor ratings were for penguin welfare, the enclosure and visitor experience. Our results aligns with previous research that also indicates zoo visitors have positive attitudes toward zoo animals and their enclosures when zoos provide positive experiences for visitors (Woods, 2002 ; Clayton et al, 2009 ; Miller et al, 2013 ; Yilmaz et al, 2017 ). Consequently, the present study results are encouraging for both zoos as it suggests the two zoos are providing positive experiences for visitors at the penguin exhibit that may be related to positive visitor attitudes which is important for the overall ethical foundation of zoos (Maple and Perdue, 2013 ; Sherwen et al, 2018 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Visitor Attitudes Toward Little Penguins (Eudyptula minor) at Two Australian Zoos

et al. 2021

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This study identified and compared the attitudes of visitors toward zoo-housed little penguins, their enclosure and visitor experience that may influence the way visitors behave toward little penguins at two Australian zoos. Visitor attitudes were assessed using an anonymous questionnaire, targeting visitor beliefs, and experiences, where visitors were randomly approached at the penguin exhibit after they had finished viewing the penguins. Visitors were given two options to complete the questionnaire, on an iPad during their zoo visit or online (URL sent via email) after their zoo visit. A total of 638 participants (495 at Melbourne Zoo and 143 at Taronga Zoo) completed the questionnaire, 42% were completed onsite during their zoo visit and 58% were completed online after their zoo visit. Most participants were living in Australia, non-zoo members, female, previously or currently owned a pet, aged between 26 and 35 years and had a University degree. Results showed that the attitude dimensions of visitors were consistent between the two zoos which indicates that these measures of attitudes were stable over time and location. Overall, visitors at both zoos had positive attitudes toward little penguins, penguin welfare, the enclosure, and visitor experience. However, whether these positive attitudes and positive visitor experience influenced the way visitors behaved toward the penguins remains unclear. There were some differences in visitor attitudes toward the perceived “aggressiveness” and “timidness” of little penguins, “negative penguin welfare”, “experience with the penguins”, “learning”, “visual barriers” and the way visitors rated their overall experience at the penguin enclosure. While the reasons for the differences in visitor attitudes and visitor experience between the zoos were not clear, some factors such as penguin behavior and enclosure design, may have been attributable to these differences. Also, a relationship was found between visitor attitudes and how visitors rated the welfare of penguins, the enclosure and visitor experience at the enclosure; more positive visitor attitudes were associated with higher ratings of penguin welfare, the enclosure and visitor experience. The practical implications of these results for zoos is unclear because the differences in visitor attitudes were numerically small. This requires further comparisons between zoos or enclosures that are more markedly different than the penguin enclosures in the present study and further research on how visitors assess zoo animals, enclosures and visitor experience.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Visitor Attitudes Toward Little Penguins (Eudyptula minor) at Two Australian Zoos

et al. 2021

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“…It is notable, therefore, that we also found evidence to support a positive effect of biodiversity on interest within our smaller public exhibit study. This showed that phyletic richness effects on interest were maintained in a setting that allowed animal movement and behaviour, which can alter human interest in organisms 52 , 53 (Fig. 2a ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Image-based, online surveys provide experimental control and large sample sizes but miss animal movement and behaviour which can enhance human engagement with natural scenes 52 , 53 . It is notable, therefore, that we also found evidence to support a positive effect of biodiversity on interest within our smaller public exhibit study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple dimensions of biodiversity drive human interest in tide pool communities

Fairchild

Fowler

Pahl

et al. 2018

Sci Rep

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Activities involving observation of wild organisms (e.g. wildlife watching, tidepooling) can provide recreational and learning opportunities, with biologically diverse animal assemblages expected to be more stimulating to humans. In turn, more diverse communities may enhance human interest and facilitate provisioning of cultural services. However, no experimental tests of this biodiversity-interest hypothesis exist to date. We therefore investigated the effects of different dimensions of animal biodiversity (species richness, phyletic richness and functional diversity) on self-reported interest using tide pools as a model system. We performed two experiments by manipulating: (1) the richness of lower (species) and higher taxonomic levels (phyla) in an image based, online survey, and (2) the richness of the higher taxonomic level (phyla) in live public exhibits. In both experiments, we further quantified functional diversity, which varied freely, and within the online experiment we also included the hue diversity and colourfulness arising from the combination of organisms and the background scenes. Interest was increased by phyletic richness (both studies), animal species richness (online study) and functional diversity (online study). A structural equation model revealed that functional diversity and colourfulness (of the whole scene) also partially mediated the effects of phyletic richness on interest in the online study. In both studies, the presence of three of four phyla additively increased interest, supporting the importance of multiple, diverse phyla rather than a single particularly interesting phylum. These results provide novel experimental evidence that multiple dimensions of biodiversity enhance human interest and suggest that conservation initiatives that maintain or restore biodiversity will help stimulate interest in ecosystems, facilitating educational and recreational benefits.

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“…Smart et al (2021) found similar results, interpretation located in an immersive exhibit having not only increased attraction power, but increased holding power also. Additionally, previous studies show that immersive exhibits on the whole are more attractive for zoo visitors (A. Moss et al, 2008; Ross & Gillespie, 2009; Yılmaz et al, 2017). This appears to carry over to interpretation too, suggesting visitors are more inclined to seek out information about a species if they feel more immersed in that species' environment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Assessing the effect of interpretation design traits on zoo visitor engagement

et al. 2023

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In the past few decades, zoos have undergone a transformation from places of entertainment to centers for conservation, with education becoming a particular focus. Interpretation in zoos is a near‐universal method for delivering education in zoos and has been shown to prompt learning and pro‐conservation behavior change. However, there is limited understanding on how interpretation design itself can influence visitor engagement. Using unobtrusive visitor observations (n = 3890), this study measures visitor engagement of multiple pieces of interpretation with various design “traits,” to provide a comprehensive overview of the key traits related to increased visitor engagement. The proportion of visitors who stopped at the interpretation (attraction power), and how long they stopped for (holding power), were our two outcome variables. From our models, we found that attraction and holding power are most strongly influenced by the type of interpretation, with interactive interpretation seeing nearly four times as many visitors stop, and for more than six times longer, when compared to standard text and graphics interpretation. We also found that location was significantly related to attraction power, with visitors more likely to stop at interpretation in more immersive exhibits. Lastly, interpretation containing images of humans were related to a higher holding power. We hope our findings will be used as a guide for designing interpretation that is both attractive and interesting to zoo visitors, maximizing the conservation education value of zoo‐based interpretation.

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Visitors Experiences in Different Zoo Exhibits

Cited by 9 publications

References 37 publications

Visitor Attitudes Toward Little Penguins (Eudyptula minor) at Two Australian Zoos

Visitor Attitudes Toward Little Penguins (Eudyptula minor) at Two Australian Zoos

Multiple dimensions of biodiversity drive human interest in tide pool communities

Assessing the effect of interpretation design traits on zoo visitor engagement

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