Social premises of formation of the populations recreation needs

The author discuss social premises of formation of recreation needs by individuals and societies. In this article the term „recreation needs” is understood as an isolating social system of demanos and preferences of certain groups of the population with reference to place and method of spending their free time deriving in result of interaction various causative factors. The factors can be divided into two groups: endogeneous and exogenous. The group of endogenous factors is created by those conditions which are somehow internally, integrally connected whith a certain social group. The factors determine the basis of behaviour patterns and preferences. They form psychological-social reaction to stimuli coming from the surrounding and thus a specific evaluation of recreation needs for the given group. This endogenous substratum is overlapped by influence by exogenous factors, such as broadly understood education, propaganda (particularly though mass media), various types of orders and bans of administrative type etc. Only both groups of factors - eindogenous and exogenous - give jointly the picture of desires and preferences of a givan social group which influences the demand for specific forms of tourist-recreation services. The mentioned conditions form a specific system of social preferences with respect to form and place of rest. The preferences should be the basis for organization of recreation centres in specific physical-geographical space and in defined socio-economic conditions

Spatial-Functional structure of recreation in the Wigry lake region

Wigry Landscape Park, with the Lake of Wigry lying in its central part, was m 1976-1979 a subject of research carried out within the framework of a general study sponsored by the Council for Mutual Economic Cooperation, which was entitled „Methodology of economic and non-economic assessments of the effects of man's influance on environment”. The main objective of that study was to investigate all functions associated with recreation in this area, its internal differentiation and impact on other economic forms of spatial organization. The system approach was applied, which made it possible to analyse phenomena from various angles, and in particular the functional-spatial links which unite various elements (natural, social, economic) of the territorial recreation system. The region of lake Wigry, protected both as a landscape park as well as under the international programme „Aqua”, is endowed with high-class landscape values, though it is still relatively poorly organized from the viewpoint of tourtism. This makes it possible to shape in a proper way relations between recreation and natural environment, as well as other fields of economic activity, needs of local population and needs of the whole nation; moreover, a model of the utilization of the area for recreation can be constructed, which will satisfy social needs and not destroy the values of natural environment. The spatial-functional structure of the territorial recreation system of Wigry seems to be correct. It is clearly a polyconcentric system, in which there are five main disposition and realization centres: Stary Folwark, Wigry, Bryzgiel, Gawrychruda and Słupie; autonomous subregions of the tourisit movement have developed round those centres. Basic indices concerned with the development of recreation have been calculated; they illustrate the utilization of the dormitory and catering bases, the spatial structure of recreational areas and economic effects of recreation (see tabl. 1-5). Conclusions as to the future development of tourism in that area have been based of the evaluation of the resources of the natural environment, which was made on the basis of the assessment of the natural capacity of this environment. On the basis of research findings it can be surmised that the further development of recreation in the region of lake Wigry should be directed towards the concentration of recreation objects in two belts (the southern belt: Gawrychruda - Bryzgiel, and the northern belt: Stary Folwark - Mikołajewo), the standard of services shauld be raised, the programme of recreation – enriched, and the hinterlaind appropriately adapted. The remaining areas should be utilized extensively, to a limited degree, mainly by organizing special forms of recreation. This variant seems to be optimal, both from the viewpoint of spatial organization as well as the protection of the natural values of the region