Addressing the different information needs of diverse visitors to Arthur’s Pass National Park

Abstract

The New Zealand landmass encompasses a vast diversity of wilderness areas, including fourteen national parks and other conservation lands. These natural environments attract a large number of domestic and international visitors, who consult a many different sources of on-line and printed information before and during their visit. However, these resources are usually designed to suit a generic visitor, and take no account of the different needs and expectation of diverse individuals. In this thesis, I investigate the use of information resources by different users groups as categorized by the Wilderness Perception Scaling (WPS) method. I begin with a review of relevant studies and statistics relating to domestic and international visitors’ experiences of the New Zealand wilderness. I then report on the results of my direct observations of visitors to three destinations, and I discuss the findings that I gathered from surveys that I conducted in two of these locations. This work includes pilot studies of two sites — the Catlins Conservation Park and the Orokonui Ecosanctuary — and a more detailed study of Arthur’s Pass National Park. Following a discussion of my observations and findings, I argue for a redesign of the Department of Conservation (DOC) Website, and I present sketch ideas for a new site that is informed by mobile media interface designs. This work hints at future possibilities for smartphone applications. I conclude that current technologies allow us to address the needs and expectations of different visitors to wilderness areas. Furthermore, I argue that mobile media can enable individuals to create and share, as well as download and use, information resources that address their various and different requirements. I conclude that, if we want younger people to engage with wilderness environments, we should be using the technologies that they are using.