Norm Stability: Visitors’ Perceptions of Crowding at Cumberland Island National Seashore

Abstract

Researchers and managers of parks and protected areas often employ normative theory or a normative approach when attempting to understand and manage visitor use and related impacts. Normative theory and associated approaches use indicators, thresholds, and evaluative dimensions to estimate visitor opinion about desired resource or experiential conditions. However, visitors’ desired conditions are often difficult to study longitudinally. Researchers used Cumberland Island National Seashore (CUIS) and its visitors to investigate the stability of crowding thresholds by comparing 2011 and 2018 visitor survey results. Daily maximum visitation levels remained constant between 2011 and 2018 as did visitors’ preferred conditions. However, the use levels that may lead to potential displacement and visitors’ acceptance of higher use both increased, suggesting visitors may expect conditions to remain the same but be increasingly tolerant of more visitors at specific attraction sites. Potential implications and further research related to normative theory and norm stability are discussed.