Attributes of the Deer Hunting Experience: A Cluster-Analytic Study

Using data from Washington State deer hunters, this paper reports on a cluster analytic study of the attributes of the deer hunting experience. The data were collected by mail questionnaire from 3,924 deer hunters by Potter, Hendee, and Clark (1973). Scaled data were subjected to a variable cluster analysis, and then variable clusters were used in an object cluster analysis of hunters. Several dimensions of the deer hunting experience which add to or detract from satisfaction, and groups of hunters reacting differently to these dimensions, are identified. Nature, harvest, equipment, out-group contact, and skill are identified as important attributes of the hunt, for all deer hunters. Ten groups of Washington State deer hunters, each with a different pattern of response across the dimensions, are identified and discussed. Association of additional hunt and user characteristics with the hunter groups is shown. Uses of these and similar data in game and recreation management are discussed

Colorado Deer Hunting Experiences

Those responsible for managing environmental resources, like big game, have often posed questions regarding how best to manage and allocate the resource to “provide benefits to people.” One approach to obtaining information for answering these questions is based on consumer behavior concepts and research. Our consumer-oriented approach to deriving management information for environmental resources, particularly game and other recreational resources, rests on ideas conceptualized by Wagar (1966) and having their theoretical base in psychology’s expectancy-value theory (Lawler 1973). The general theoretical orientation we follow is described in Driver and Brown (1975). We also acknowledge a debt to the multiple satisfactions approach to game management articulated by Hendee (1974). The management orientation of this paper suggests that managers should produce opportunities for game-related recreation which recognize the multiple dimensions of the experience. It is the experience that is the important product of recreation, and quality experiences are a function of how well the consumer’s desired satisfactions are fulfilled. Within this orientation, this paper reports characteristics of the Colorado deer hunter population in terms of the kinds of satisfaction that make up deer hunting experiences. In doing so, the usefulness of cluster analytic techniques for social research in wildlife management is illustrated. The information and analytical techniques discussed in this paper have implications for resource valuation, resource allocation, user management, and related aspects of wildlife planning and management

Low back pain in Hispanic residential carpenters

Low back pain (LBP) is a leading cause of lost work time and has been recognized as America’s number one workplace safety challenge. Low back pain is occurring at epidemic proportions among construction workers, and minority populations have been under-investigated for risk of back injury. This project investigated the multiple potential risk factors for occupational LBP among Hispanic residential carpenters