Effects of residence on hunting and birdwatching participation

In the United States, more than 70% of the population live in urbanized areas of at least 50,000 people. However, people living in rural areas tend to have higher rates of participation in outdoor recreational activities,... [ view full abstract ]

In the United States, more than 70% of the population live in urbanized areas of at least 50,000 people. However, people living in rural areas tend to have higher rates of participation in outdoor recreational activities, particularly hunting. There is still uncertainty on whether childhood or current residence has more of an influence on wildlife-related attitudes and behaviors. This study used a mail-out survey to the general public of the U.S. to better understand the influence of childhood and current residence on participation in hunting and birdwatching (n=1030, 23.3% response rate). The theory of planned behavior was used to predict past participation in and intention to participate in the future in hunting and birdwatching. Childhood and current residence were then added into the models to test if they explained significant additional variance in participation. The populations of childhood and current residences were self-reported by respondents and collapsed into three categories following U.S. Census definitions: urban, urban cluster, and rural. Linear regressions showed that both childhood and current residence were significant predictors of past hunting participation, and improved the explanatory power of the model beyond attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. However, neither residence variable was a significant predictor for birdwatching intention and behavior. Additionally, clustering people into five categories based on their childhood and current residence found significant differences between attitudes, norms, perceived behavioral control, and participation in hunting and birdwatching. Those who were raised in a different residence category than their current residence expressed opinions about hunting that were in the middle of lifelong urban or lifelong rural residents; differences were less pronounced for birdwatching. This also suggests that current residence may temper the effect of childhood residence on wildlife-related attitudes and behavior. As population continues to increase and becomes increasingly urban, it is important to understand how childhood and current residence both have an impact on attitudes and behavior