Wilderness as a place: human dimensions of the wilderness experience

Understanding the experiences sought by visitors to wilderness areas and how satisfi ed they are with their experiences is an important type of information for wilderness managers. Understanding how these dimensions are measures of the concept of place can help wilderness managers develop better visitor education and management programs. This paper briefl y summarizes seven studies of wilderness visitors conducted during 1997 through 2000 in state and federal managed wilderness areas in the northeastern United States. These studies attempted to identify and measure the important variables and dimensions (i.e., factors) of the human experience in wilderness areas. The overall goal of these seven studies was to develop a multi-dimensional scale to better understand the relationship between people and wilderness as a place.