Stress Appraisal and Coping Response to Hassles Experienced in Outdoor Recreation Settings

The purpose of this article was to report recreationists' coping response to stress experienced in outdoor recreation settings. Stress was defined as daily hassles. The most frequent sources of hassles were litter, noise from other people, damage to the resource, and too many people at campsites. Recreationists used a coping scheme that combined problem and emotion-focused coping mechanisms. Intensity of stress moderately predicted coping response and frequency of stress weakly predicted coping. The use of coping had a moderately positive relationship with negative impacts to the recreation experience resulting from the hassle situation. The results were interpreted using psychological stress theory to offer refinement and future research directions in recreation-stress research.

Keywords:

• wilderness
• structural equation modeling
• conflict

This research was supported in part by funds provided by the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dr. Alan Watson is specifically acknowledged for support of this study. Remainder of research supported by Clemson University through Public Services Activities (research) funds.

Notes

^a Standardized parameter coefficient is interpreted analogous to a beta weight in regression.

^b Weighted Omega reliability coefficient calculated using parameter coefficients in SEM model.

^c Removed from model due to high residual correlations.

^d Cross-loaded from self control factor.

^e Cross-loaded from psychological distancing factor.

^a Categories were not mutually exclusive.