The year in review: Journal of Park and Recreation Administration.

Mark Twain once noted that scientists had discovered that the Mississippi River was decreasing in length (through sedimentation) by about one and one-third miles per year. Tongue firmly in cheek, Twain extrapolated that this meant that a million years or so ago, the river would have been some 1,300,000 miles long, sticking out over the Gulf of Mexico like a fishing rod. Moreover, claimed the humorist, in roughly another 700 years, the Mississippi will shrink to the point that New Orleans and Cairo will be a single city. Science, Twain claimed, was fascinating in that one is able to get such a wholesale return of conjecture for such a trifling investment of fact.

While authors who contributed to the Journal of Park and Recreation Administration (JPRA) during 1993 did not lay claim to any findings as startling as Twain pondered, neither did they tread on such thin ice with respect to the ramifications of their work for park and recreation managers and planners. Indeed, perhaps the single thread that most firmly connected the papers published by JPRA in the last four issues was the extent to which the authors focused on the tangible and realistic implications that their findings have for management. Given the mission of the journal to bridge the gap between theory and practice, this should not be surprising; but it does indicate that the editorial board is sensitive to the publication's operational and functional mission, an idea that potential authors should heed.

Another observation that becomes apparent as one reviews the 24 papers published this past year was the surprisingly small number of topical areas covered by contributing authors. The method used for identifying these topical areas was to make a plain-paper copy of the tables of contents of each of the four issues published during the past year, cut them into individual titles, and put them into thematic piles.

The topical areas by number of papers were: issues and concerns related to working in park and recreation settings (eight); management decision-making in recreation and park settings (eight); fiscal issues (three); constraints to participation (three); and marketing (two). The papers in each of these areas are briefly reviewed below.

Working in Park and Recreation Settings

As Havitz and McCarville suggested in their editors' introduction to the journal's special issue on employee topics, motivation of recreation, park, and leisure services delivery personnel is a topic researchers percieve as important. Five of the eight papers categorized under this heading dealt in one way or another with motivational factors. Shinew and Weston (1992) outlined important characteristics of an effective reward system. yen and McKinney (1992) compared the relationship between perceived job characteristics and compensation satisfaction in the public and private sectors. Nogradi, Yardley, and Kanters (1993) considered the relationship of the motivating potential of jobs and core job dimensions. Two papers (DeGraaf & Edgington, 1992; Lankford, Neal, & Buxton, 1992) considered the motivator/hygiene theory developed some 40 years ago by Herzberg and other organizational theorists. The Lankford et al. work studied employees across several service sectors, while the DeGraaf and Edgington study focused on seasonal employees.

Henderson and Bialeschki (1993) examined seasonal employees from a different perspective in a study focusing on the flow producing potential of work performed by summer camp staff. Other research in this category considered on-the-job tasks and perceived competencies of municipal recreation managers (Smale & Frisby, 1992) and worker stress associated with residing on-site in isolated park settings (Ruddell & Ellis, 1992).

Management Decision-Making

Of the eight papers focusing on management decision-making, four explored both the decisions being made--with their implications for park and recreation administration--and the method used in the decisionmaking process. Williams and Neal (1993), for example, combined importance-performance analysis with the content (or need) approach to understanding employee motivation from Herzberg's motivational/hygiene theory to assess the attitudes of employees and their managers regarding the motivational climate within park and recreation organizations. Anderson and Schneider (1993) applied the Delphi process to identify innovations in recreation management, while Machlis and Harvey (1993) used a case study approach of the National Park Service's Visitor Services Project to examine the conditions under which sustained recreation research projects will succeed, and Wicks, Backman, Allen, and Van Blaircom (1993) applied an interactive computer-based mapping and modeling system (Geographic Information System, or GIS) to show how the social need for parks might be measured.

Other papers in this category examined several different facets of decision-making. Fletcher and King (1993) reported on how a telephone survey of voters was used successfully to help provide policy directions for guiding a bond campaign. Hendricks, Ruddell, and Bullis (1993) described a conceptual model for deciding among various direct and indirect management visitor management decisions. Selin and Chavez (1993) evaluated how the USDA Forest Service's National Recreation Strategy influenced management and the formation of partnerships within the agency. Chavez and Selin (1993) conducted an exploratory study of management perspectives on recreational mountain biking.

Fiscal Issues

Given the level of concern over fiscal issues in the public sector, it was not surprising to find several papers that focused on financial aspects of parks and recreation. While most anecdotal reports seem to suggest pessimistic fiscal outlooks (e.g., budget reductions) in public agencies, Weissinger and Murphy (1993)--based on a survey of 60 Western and Midwestern small-town public recreation agencies--concluded that fiscal health in these departments may not be as austere as expected. Their work suggested that losses in traditional sources of funding, such as taxes, are being offset by management strategies (e.g., increased use of volunteers) and other sources of funds (e.g., bond issues).

Instances in which economic conditions are problematic for public agencies do exist, however; Wicks (1993) used a panel study to examine the stability of social equity preferences for recreation and park services during a period of economic decline. The authors concluded that equity preferences seemed to change little over time despite the change in economic environment. Toward the other end of the economic spectrum, Wicks and Peterson (1993) used a case study approach to examine how a small, affluent community has used its close proximity to a county park as an excuse not to build its own parks.

In light of current trends in recreation and leisure research, it also was not surprising to find several papers concerned with constraints to participation. McCarville and Smale (1993), for example, examined whether perceived constraints varied over different activity domains and whether demographic variables influenced variations observed in the study. They concluded that, although the nature of the domain and some demographic variables influenced the reporting of constraints, the dominant pattern of findings seemed to suggest that constraints tended to generalize across both groups and settings. Backman and Wright (1993) explored perceptions of constraints among non-participants, finding that factors including cost, preferences, opportunity, physical effort, time, and public land conflicts with constrained participation. Scott (1993) examined some of the causes of time scarcity and its implications for leisure behavior as a basis for discussing how leisure services agencies might respond to time scarcity (e.g., taking steps to provide convenient program offerings, reservation systems).

The final category that seemed to emerge from the papers focused on marketing, or at least on issues related to how consumers obtain and process information relevant to their leisure decision-making. McCarville and Garrow (1993) studied the effect of name selection of a fitness center on how consumers assessed the facility in terms of pricing expectation and willingness to pay. They concluded that relevant cues--such as names--are important to consumers in assessing new products. Schuett (1993) examined the importance of information sources used in trip planning by whitewater kayakers. He found that education, participation frequency, and skill level were the most frequent predictors for information sources.

Working to Bridge the Gap

Overall, the papers published in JPRA in 1993 made considerable headway toward bridging the gap between research and practice. While the works cited above did advance the ability of decision-makers to take actions grounded in the results of research, there is still much to be learned about park and recreation administration.

Accordingly, JPRA continues to solicit manuscripts that exhibit rigorous scholarship and focus on management applications that empower administrators and planners. To the extent that manuscript submission rates are a bellwether of interest in the study of park and recreation administration, the field should have much to reflect on in coming years, for the flow of papers tendered for publication consideration is quite healthy. On the other hand, if one shares Twain's cynicism with respect to science, one simply might embrace the philosophy of Franz Kafka, who argued that "all knowledge, the totality of all questions and all answers, is contained in the dog."

References

Anderson, D.H. & Schneider, I.E. (1993). Using the delphi process to identify significant recreation research-based innovations. Journal of Park and

Recreation Administration, 11(1), 25-36.

Backman, S.J. & Wright, B.A. (1993), An exploratory study of the relationship of attitude and the perception of constraints to hunting. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(2), 1-16.

Chavez, D.J. Winter, P.L., & Baas, J.M. (1993). Recreational mountain biking: A management perspective. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 29-36.

DeGraaf, D. & Edginton, C. R. (1992). Work motivation and camp counselors. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 10(4),37-56.

Fletcher, J.E. & King, M. (1993). Use of voter surveys to plan bond campaigns for parks and recreation. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(2), 17-27.

Henderson, K.A. & Bialeschki, M.D. (1993). Optimal work experiences as "flow: Implications for seasonal staff. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(1), 37-48.

Hendricks, B., Ruddell, E.J., & Bullis, C. (1993). Direct and indirect park and recreation resource management decision making: A conceptual approach. Journal of Park and Recreation, 11(2), 28-39.

Lankford, S.V., Neal, L.L., & Buxton, B.P. (1992). An examination and comparison of work motivators in public, private/commercial, nonprofit, and armed forces leisure service organizations. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 10(4), 57-70.

Machlis, G.E. & Harvey, M.J. (1993). The adoption and diffusion of recreation research programs: A case study of the visitor services project. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(1), 49-65.

McCarville, R.E. & Garrow, G.W. (1993). Name selection and response to a hypothetical recreation program. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 15-27.

McCarville, R.E. & Smale, B.J.A. (1993). Perceived constraints to leisure participation within five activity domains. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(2), 40-59.

Nogradi, G.S., Yardley, J.K., & Kanters, M.A. (1993). The relationship between work-related attention, motivating potential of jobs, and job effectiveness outcomes. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3),37-50.

Ruddell, E.J. & Ellis, G.D. (1992). Predictors of stress among national park residential recreation employees. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 37-50.

Schuett, M.A. (1993). Information sources and risk recreation: The case of whitewater kayakers. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(1) 67-77.

Scott, D. (1993). Time scarcity and its implications for leisure behavior and leisure delivery. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 51-60.

Selin, S. & Chavez, D. (1993). Recreation partnerships and the USDA Forest Service: Managers' perceptions of the impact of the national recreation strategy. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(1), 1-8.

Shinew, K.J. & Weston, R. (1992). A conceptual framework of organizational reward systems: Implications for leisure service managers. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 10(4), 1-14.

Smale, B.J.A. & Frisby, W. (1992). Managerial work activities and perceived competencies of municipal recreation managers. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 10(4), 81-108.

Weissinger, W. & Murphy, W.D. (1993). A survey of fiscal conditions in small-town public recreation departments from 1987 to 1991. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 61-71.

Wicks, B.E. (1993). Testing the effect of an economic downturn on equity preferences for park and recreation services. Journal of Parks and Recreation Administration, 11(2), 72-81.

Wicks, B.E., Backman, K.F., Allen, J., & Van Blaricom, D. (1993). Geographic information systems (GIS): A tool for marketing, managing, and planning municipal park systems. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(1), 9-23.

Wicks, B.E. & Peterson, L. (1993). When does a county park become a municipal park? An issue of equity and interjurisdictional responsibilities. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(3), 1-13.

Williams, A.E. & Neal, L.L. (1993). Motivational assessment in organizations: An application of importance-performance analysis. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 11(2), 60-71.

Yen, Tsu-Hong & McKinney, W.R. (1992). The relationship between compensation satisfaction and job characteristics: A comparative study of public and private leisure service professionals. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 10(4), 15-36.