Change in Focus of Attention Among Whale-watch Passengers Occurs As a Function of Temporal Phase of the Tour

Abstract

this article examines how the focus of attention of whale-watch passengers changes as a tour pro- gresses, based on the premise that effective interpretation programs should be sensitive to changes in passenger mindset during the course of a tour. Spontaneous questions asked by 823 passengers dur- ing 24 whale-watch tours off the New England coast during the summer of 2007 were recorded. the 24 tours carried 7,256 passengers during the 2-month study period. Content analysis of the 823 ques- tions indicated that focus of attention varied in a predictable fashion during the tour. this suggests that whale-watch interpretation programs intending to influence passenger awareness of marine mammals, their ocean habitat, and the importance of marine conservation should be sensitive to the changes in focus of attention that occur throughout a tour.