COVID-19 messaging in U.S. state parks: Extensions of the outdoor recreation strategies and practices framework unmasked by the pandemic

Abstract

\n U.S. state parks are a considerable part of the nation s recreation landscape. Understanding their management concerns, including impacts from pandemics, is imperative for sustainably achieving park objectives. Our study aimed to 1) examine park managers responses to a novel stressor (COVID-19); 2) aid managers in communicating these strategies to visitors in their pre-visit phase; and 3) test a park management framework s ability to adapt to this novel stressor in this pre-visit phase. Manning and colleagues outdoor recreation strategies and practices framework provides parks with up to 24 response options to an issue: four strategies intersecting with six practices. This framework has been limited to common in-park concerns and visitors. We examined how park systems communicate with potential visitors about COVID-19, to advance the framework toward broader concerns and scales. We analyzed the 50 U.S. state park systems official COVID-19 communications at the traditional start of the peak use season (summer 2020). We qualitatively coded these for reference to the framework s components and mentions of scale. This highlighted that while “limit use” and “reduce impact of use” were the only strategies used, different practices and recognitions of beyond-park and beyond-visit scales were acknowledged (e.g., “please recreate close to home”). We suggest the data reveal a seventh practice in use and for framework inclusion: “influence pre-visit decisions.” The pandemic provided an opportunity for parks to communicate their managerial responses with consistency and creativity, as well as an opportunity for researchers and managers to advance the strategies and practices framework.\n