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Abstract
This paper presents research conducted for the Florida Reef Resilience Program on nonresident recreational SCUBA divers in three zones of the Florida Keys. When divers were segmented into specialization subgroups for analysis, divers in different subgroups tended to use different geographic locations. These results suggest differences in user preferences; yet when social norms such as perceived crowding were included in the analysis, there were no significant differences across specialization levels. Nonresident divers may be motivated by nonsocial drivers, which has important implications for recreation management decisions and strategies that are based on social carrying capacity. Results also suggest that nonsocial factors such as resource conditions may have an important influence on selection of dive locations and satisfaction with the diving experience.
Parent Publication
Citation
Paterson, Shona; Loomis, David K. 2010. Are the Keys loved to death A study of diver specialization levels and preferences in the Florida Keys. In: Watts, Clifton E., Jr.; Fisher, Cherie LeBlanc, eds. Proceedings of the 2009 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-66. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 17-23.
