Young people's demand for countryside recreation : a function of supply, tastes and preferences?

This paper examines the influences on young people’s demand for countryside recreation. Although there is information in the public domain concerning the recreational patterns and motivations of adults, there is relatively little data concerning young people’s participation and none of it is countryside specific. This is a significant gap in the knowledge base of countryside recreation planners, particularly when it is considered that recreation patterns in adults are often strongly influenced by childhood experience. The methodology employed by this study was to survey 1,079 young people in secondary schools in Hampshire concerning their use of, latent demand for and attitudes towards the countryside. The study found that demand was closely linked to supply, meaning that if there were accessible countryside facilities close by then young people would tend to use them, regardless of their socio-economic background. The study also found that demand for countryside recreation is strongly influenced by tastes and preferences and the availability of alternative forms of recreation. The paper concludes that in order to increase demand amongst young people, interventions need to be aimed at altering and developing the tastes and preferences of young people. Interventions designed to encourage young people to place a higher value on countryside recreation are more likely to be successful than simply removing unsubstantiated ‘barriers’ to participation.