Kansas Residents’ Participation in, Opinions on,
and Attitudes Toward Boating in Kansas

Conducted for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks

by Responsive Management

July 2002

Kansas Residents’ Participation in, Opinions on,
and Attitudes Toward Boating in Kansas

July 2002

Responsive Management National Office

Mark Damian Duda, Executive Director

Peter E. De Michele, Ph.D., Director of Research

Alison Lanier, Business Manager

William Testerman, Survey Center Manager

Carol Zurawski, Research Associate

Martin Jones, Research Associate

Joy Yoder, Research Associate

Steven J. Bissell, Ph.D., Qualitative Research Associate

Ping Wang, Ph.D., Quantitative Research Associate

James B. Herrick, Ph.D., Research Associate

130 Franklin Street

Harrisonburg, VA 22801

Phone: 540/432-1888 Fax: 540/432-1892

E-mail:

Kansas Residents’ Opinions on and Attitudes Toward Boating1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction and Methodology...... 1

Power Boating and Sailboating/Sailboarding: Participation in, Satisfaction with,
Preferred Locations, and Ratings of Facilities...... 4

Fishing From a Boat: Participation in, Satisfaction with, Preferred Locations, and
Ratings of Facilities...... 13

Boaters Ratings of Satisfaction with and Facilities for Each Reservoir...... 24

Anglers Ratings of Satisfaction with and Facilities for Each Reservoir and
State Fishing Lake...... 31

Boating Findings from the Outdoor Recreation Survey...... 46

Demographic Data...... 62

Survey Questions As Administered on Each of the Three Surveys...... 70

Kansas Residents’ Opinions on and Attitudes Toward Boating1

INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY

This study was conducted for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (hereinafter referred to as “the Department”) to assess Kansas residents’ (16 years and older) participation in, opinions on, and attitudes toward boating in Kansas. The data were gathered as part of three separate surveys conducted for the Department. The survey questionnaires were developed cooperatively by Responsive Management and the Department. The decision to include questions targeting boating participation in Kansas in all three surveys was a result of the need to obtain a sufficient number of randomly selected boaters. The samples for the three surveys provided a total boating sample of 2,182 respondents.

The first survey, which resulted in the report, Kansas Residents’ Participation in, Opinions on, and Attitudes Toward Outdoor Recreation, was conducted during November-December 2001 (hereinafter referred to as the “outdoor recreation survey”). It was designed to gather data on Kansas residents’ participation in and satisfaction with various outdoor recreation activities. The second survey, which resulted in the report, Kansas Residents’ Opinions on and Attitudes Toward the Programs and Activities of the Department of Wildlife and Parks, was conducted during January 2002 and was designed to gather data on Kansas residents’ attitudes toward and satisfaction with the services of the Department. The third survey, which resulted in the report, Kansas Residents’ Opinions on and Rating of the Kansas Department of Wildlife’s Programs, was conducted during May-June 2002 and was designed to assess Kansas residents’ knowledge of and opinions toward the programs of the Department.

Each of the three surveys included a series of questions pertaining specifically to boating that were asked of respondents who indicated that they had participated in boating during the past 12 months. Three questions were asked of residents who indicated that they had power boated or sailboated in the past 12 months, and five questions were asked of residents who indicated that they had fished from a boat during the past 12 months. In addition, the outdoor recreation survey asked additional questions to residents who indicated that they had power boated, sailboated, or fished from a boat during the past 12 months. This report combines the findings from the eight questions asked in all three surveys, as well as the additional questions asked only in the outdoor recreation survey.

Telephones were selected as the preferred sampling medium because nearly all residents of Kansas have a telephone. In addition, a central polling site at the Responsive Management office allowed for rigorous quality control over the interviews and data collection. Responsive Management maintains its own in-house telephone interviewing facilities. These facilities are staffed by interviewers with experience conducting computer-assisted telephone interviews on the subject of natural resources and outdoor recreation for state fish and wildlife agencies. The data were collected using Questionnaire Programming Language 4.1 (QPL), which is computer software specifically designed for telephone survey data collection. The Survey Center Managers randomly monitored telephone workstations without the interviewers’ knowledge to evaluate the performance of each interviewer.

Responsive Management has designed a telephone interviewing facility that stresses the importance of highly trained telephone interviewers who work under the close supervision of Responsive Management senior staff. To ensure that the data collected are of the highest quality, the interviewers are trained according to the standards established by the Council of American Survey Research Organizations. Methods of instruction include lecture and role-playing. The Survey Center Managers conduct project briefings with the interviewers prior to the administration of the survey. Interviewers are instructed on type of study, study goals and objectives, handling of survey questions, interview length, termination points and qualifiers for participation, interviewer instructions within the survey instrument, reading of the survey instrument, skip patterns, and probing and clarifying techniques necessary for specific questions on the survey instrument. After the surveys are completed by the interviewers, the Survey Center Managers and statisticians edit each completed survey to check for clarity and completeness.

Interviews were conducted Monday through Friday from 9:00a.m. to 9:00p.m., Saturday 11:00a.m. to 5:00p.m., and Sunday from 3:00p.m. to 7:00p.m., all local time. A five-callback design was used to maintain the representativeness of the sample, to avoid bias toward people easy to reach by telephone, and to provide an equal opportunity for all to participate. In some instances, numbers were called back up to eight times. When a respondent could not be reached on the first call, subsequent calls were placed on different days of the week and at different times of the day. This intensive call-back procedure is a good technique for ensuring the highest response rate feasible.

The software used for data collection was QPL. The survey data are entered into the computer as the interview is being conducted, eliminating manual data entry after the completion of the survey and the concomitant data entry errors that may occur with manual data entry. The survey instrument is programmed so that QPL branches, codes, and substitutes phrases in the survey based on previous responses to ensure the integrity and consistency of the data collection.

Throughout this report, findings are reported at the 95% confidence interval. For those questions asked on all three surveys, the sampling error is at most plus or minus 2.1%. This means that if the survey were conducted 100 times on different samples that were selected in the same way, the results of 95 out of the 100 surveys would fall within plus or minus 2.1% of each other. Sampling error was calculated using the formula described on below, with a sample size of 2,182 and a population size of 2,091,000. The population size is the U.S. Census Bureau’s projected population of Kansas residents 16 years of age and older in 2002.

For the questions that were asked only on the outdoor recreation survey, the sampling error is at most plus or minus 3.57%. Sampling error for that survey was calculated with a sample size of 753.

Due to rounding, percentages may not sum exactly to 100.


Where: B = maximum sampling error (as decimal)
NP = population size (i.e., total number of residents 16 years and older)
NS = sample size
Derived from formula: p. 206 in Dillman, D. A. 2000. Mail and Internet Surveys. John Wiley & Sons, NY.
Note: This is a simplified version of the formula that calculates the maximum sampling error using a 50:50 split (the most conservative calculation because a 50:50 split would give maximum variation).

POWER BOATING AND SAILBOATING/SAILBOARDING: PARTICIPATION IN, SATISFACTION WITH, PREFERRED LOCATIONS, AND RATINGS OF FACILITIES

The survey results indicate that 18% of Kansas residents have operated or rode on a powerboat, sailboat, or sailboard in the past 12 months. More males (23%) have operated or rode on a powerboat, sailboat, or sailboard in the past 12 months than have females (14%).

In examining participation among various age groups, the results show that participation rates in boating for persons aged 1654 years is fairly uniform: 27% of those aged 16 to 17, 26% for those 18 to 24 years of age, 25% for those 25 to 34 years of age, and 22% for those 35 to 44 and 45 to 54 years of age power boated, sailboated, or sailboarded. Thereafter, participation rates drop precipitously with age: only 10% of those 55 to 64 years of age boated, and 5% of those 65 years and older boated.

Years of residency in Kansas does not appear to be a strong factor in boating participation. Those who had lived in Kansas for 5 years or less (16% participation rate), those who had lived in Kansas 610 years (17%), those who had lived in Kansas 11-15 years (17%), and those who had lived in Kansas for over 25 years (17%) had participation rates very close to the statewide rate (18%). However, 25% of those who had lived in Kansas for 16-20 years and 24% of those who had lived in Kansas for 21-25 years power boated, sailboated, or sailboarded, slightly higher than the statewide rate.

Of those respondents who had operated or rode on a power boat, sailboat, or sailboard in the previous 12 months, 25% did not know on which body of water they boated most frequently in Kansas. No reservoir in Kansas had more than 10% of boaters (i.e., those respondents who had operated or rode on a power boat, sailboat, or sailboard in the previous 12 months) reporting that they boated most frequently at that location. The most popular reservoir in Kansas for boating was Perry Reservoir, with 10% of boaters reporting that this is where they most often boated. Other popular reservoirs, with more than 5% having indicated it was their most frequently visited reservoir, were Cheney Reservoir, Clinton Reservoir, and Melvern Reservoir.

A large majority (90%) of Kansas boaters were satisfied with their boating experiences on the body of water they most often visited in the previous 12 months. Most Kansas boaters were very satisfied (62%), with an additional 28% of boaters somewhat satisfied with their boating experiences. Only 6% of boaters were dissatisfied with their boating experiences on the body of water they most often visited.

A majority of boaters (73%) gave favorable ratings to the facilities, such as launch ramps, parking areas, restrooms, docks, and fish cleaning stations, at the body of water they most frequently visited: 29% of boaters rated the facilities as excellent, and 44% of boaters rated the facilities as good. Only 4% of boaters rated the facilities as poor.

These graphs appear on the following pages.

FISHING FROM A BOAT: PARTICIPATION IN, SATISFACTION WITH, PREFERRED LOCATIONS, AND RATINGS OF FACILITIES

Slightly more Kansas residents had fished from a boat in the past 12 months (20%) than had operated or rode on a power boat, sailboat, or sailboard (18%) in the past 12 months. A higher percentage of males (29%) had fished from a boat in the past 12 months than had females (11%).

In general, the age of respondent was inversely related to the participation rate in fishing from a boat. In other words, the younger age groups had a higher participation rate than did the older age groups. The highest rate of participation (35%) is among those respondents 16-17 years of age. The participation rate then falls as the age category increases, down to 9% among those 65 years and older.

There was much variation in the rates of participation in fishing from a boat according to years of residency in Kansas. Those who had lived in Kansas for 16-20 years had the highest participation rate: 31% of them had fished from a boat. The next highest participation rate was among those who had lived in Kansas 21-25 years: 29%. In contrast, only 12% of those who had lived in Kansas for 5 years or less reported fishing from a boat.

Of the Kansas residents who had fished from a boat, the largest percentage (38%) of these anglers normally fish at a reservoir. Next, 22% normally fish at a private body of water, and 21% normally fish at a State Fishing Lake.

Of those who indicated that they normally fish from a boat at a reservoir, 12% indicated that they most often fish from a boat at Milford Reservoir, and 12% indicated that they most often fish at Perry Reservoir. Next is Cheney Reservoir (8%), and then five reservoirs with 7% each: Clinton, Melvern, Cedar Bluff, Hillsdale, and Marion Reservoirs.

Of Kansas’ State Fishing Lakes, Clark State Fishing Lake, Goodman State Fishing Lake, and Wilson State Fishing Lake each had 7% reporting that they most frequently fished from a boat at these State Fishing Lakes. The largest percentage (34%) of these anglers, however, did not know at which State Fishing Lake they most often visited to fish from a boat.

Satisfaction among anglers who fished from a boat was extremely high: 90% of these fishermen were either very (58%) or somewhat (32%) satisfied with their experiences fishing from a boat at the body of water they most frequently visited. In contrast, only 7% reported being very (2%) or somewhat (5%) dissatisfied with their experiences fishing from a boat at the body of water they most frequently visited over the previous 12 months.

Approximately two-thirds (67%) of residents who had fished from a boat gave high ratings to the facilities, such as launch ramps, parking areas, restrooms, docks, and fish cleaning stations, at the body of water they most frequently visited. The survey results show that 27% rated the facilities as excellent, and 40% rated the facilities as good. Only 7% of these anglers rated the facilities they most frequently visited as poor.

BOATERS RATINGS OF SATISFACTION WITH AND FACILITIES FOR EACH RESERVOIR

Those who had power boated, sailboated, or sailboarded in the previous 12 months rated their satisfaction levels with their boating experiences on the reservoir they most frequently visited. They then rated the facilities at the reservoir they most frequently visited. These ratings are shown on the following graphs, with the reservoirs in alphabetical order.

In the graph labels, the number of people who indicated that each particular reservoir was the one they most often visited is in parentheses [e.g., Big Hill Reservoir & WA (n=3)]. Because the n-values (i.e., the numbers of respondents) are quite low for some of the reservoirs, such as the example above, care should be made in making inferences from the data.

These graphs appear on the following pages.

ANGLERS RATINGS OF SATISFACTION WITH AND FACILITIES FOR EACH RESERVOIR AND STATE FISHING LAKE

Those who had fished from a boat at a reservoir in the previous 12 months rated their satisfaction levels with their fishing/boating experiences on the reservoir they most frequently visited. They then rated the facilities at the reservoir they most frequently visited. Also, those who had fished from a boat at a State Fishing Lake in the previous 12 months rated their satisfaction levels and the facilities at these lakes. These ratings are shown on the following graphs, with the reservoirs and State Fishing Lakes in alphabetical order.

Again, in the graph labels, the number of people who indicated that each particular reservoir or lake was the one they most often visited is in parentheses [e.g., Big Hill Reservoir & WA (n=1)]. Because the n-values (i.e., the numbers of respondents) are quite low for some of the reservoirs, such as the example above, care should be made in making inferences from the data.

These graphs appear on the following pages.

BOATING FINDINGS FROM THE OUTDOOR RECREATION SURVEY

As mentioned previously, eight questions were included in all three Kansas surveys (see Introduction and Methodology), and other questions were asked only in the outdoor recreation survey. This latter survey, for the most part, replicated a 1989 survey and, therefore, allows trends to be examined for some questions. The data included here pertains only to the issue of boating participation in Kansas. All other data regarding outdoor recreation in Kansas is included in the report, Kansas Residents’ Participation in, Opinions on, and Attitudes Toward Outdoor Recreation, completed in February 2002 by Responsive Management. For these questions, the sample size was 753, and the graphs show how the data from that survey (referred to as the 2001 data because the survey was conducted in November-December 2001) compare to data from a 1989 survey.

In 2001, 65% of respondents who indicated that they had power boated in the previous 12 months spent 9 or fewer days power boating in Kansas, and 85% spent from 1 to 24 days power boating. Nonetheless, a sizeable percentage of Kansas boaters (14%) spent more than 24 days power boating. The percentages for 2001 correspond closely to the percentages reported in 1989, within the margin of error for each survey. The mean number of days spent power boating in 2001 was 13.93 days, with a standard deviation of 35.66.

In the 2001 survey, the satisfaction level for Kansas residents who power boated in the previous 12 months was extremely high: 93% of boaters reported that they were either very (66%) or somewhat (27%) satisfied. Only 4% of boaters were dissatisfied with their power boating experiences over the previous 12 months.