David K. Loomis

SCUBA Diver Specialization and Behavior Norms at Coral Reefs

SCUBA diving is an increasingly popular activity that provides a number of benefits to coastal communities. However, the sustainability of recreational diving on coral reefs is largely dependent on the health of reef ecosystems. Divers can minimize their impacts to coral reefs through responsible diving behaviors, which are in part guided by social norms. The behavioral obligation and sanction components of twelve diving behaviors were determined for Florida Keys divers throughout the course of a year. Recognizing that recreationists are not homogenous, these norms were compared according to diver specialization level. Specialized divers felt a stronger obligation not to touch corals and to pick up garbage from the sea floor than did less specialized divers. Specialized divers also reported they would feel greater embarrassment for losing buoyancy control, touching corals, taking pieces of dead corals, or touching marine mammals. The findings point to a connection between specialization level and social norms, and a relationship to ensuring continued reef health.

The Human Dimension of Changing Shorelines Along the U.S. North Atlantic Coast

Shoreline change has serious implications for coastal communities and policymakers at all levels of government. The purpose of this study was to examine existing knowledge on the social effects of erosion and accretion along the North Atlantic Coast. Initially, a comprehensive annotated bibliography of peer-reviewed literature was undertaken from which trends and themes were identified. A gap analysis matrix was developed using social variables and measurable parameters. Findings showed that overall, the quantity, breadth, and depth of literature were limited, and neglected the interdisciplinary perspective necessary to understand the social implications of shoreline change.

Resource attributes that contribute to nonresident diver satisfaction in the Florida Keys, USA.

Scuba diving is a popular form of marine-based tourism contributing over

A comparison of data collection methods: Mail versus online surveys

1 billion annually to the tourism industry in the Florida Keys. this research explores diver characteristics, how segmentation into meaningful subgroups can be achieved, and how various factors affect satisfaction. Data were collected from nonresident divers and a 10-item index was created based on respondents’ satisfaction. Discrepancy was calculated using the same items, and a specialization index was used to subgroup the respondents. Data were analyzed using step-wise regression. results revealed that discrepancies for individual items contributed to satisfaction, which differed according to specialization level. this suggests that satisfaction is related to both discrepancies between expectations and experiences, and specialization level, providing avenues for strategic marketing and management.

Human dimensions indicators of coastal ecosystem services: A hierarchical perspective

Abstract Online surveys offer an alternative to mail, telephone, and on-site techniques for gathering data. However, criticisms of Internet surveys, including survey and item nonresponse bias, and differences in the nature of the data have been raised. A total of 11 data sets were collected at Zuma Beach, California; within various state parks and forests in Massachusetts; at Buck Island Reef National Monument, USVI; and at Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida. These studies were designed, in part, to test for differences between the modes of survey delivery. Data for each study site were collected via both mail and Internet surveys, with the mail and Internet surveys being identical for each study location. Results indicate that while some differences exist between mail and online surveys at the individual study level, these differences are not present when the studies are combined and that mode differences observed for individual studies may be idiosyncratic rather than mode specific.