Shadows of Perception: The Role of Photographic Context in Visitor Use Management Research

The unrelenting visitation to national parks calls for the continued understanding of how certain conditions shape the visitor experience and for researchers to apply the best visitor-use management practices. This study investigated perceptions of crowding, specifically using photographic panels and the possible influence of extraneous variables in those photographs. Surveys were conducted at a national park in which participants were asked to rate the acceptability of people at one time (PAOT) on a trail at a popular overlook. Participants were given one of two sets of photographic panels depicting two different skyscapes, a Bright Sky and a Gray Sky. Respondents who were given the Gray Sky photographs reported lower levels of acceptability of PAOT compared to the Bright Sky respondents. This underscores the need to further examine how extraneous variables (e.g. environmental conditions) in photographs used for visitor-use management research may influence participant responses.