Examination of Place Attachment in Camp Staff and Its Association with Connectedness to Nature over the Course of a Seven Day Camp

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to expand on the limited body of knowledge that exists on place attachment (PA) to a site specific area after participating in an activity over a short period of time; and to assess if there is a relationship between increased levels of PA and preexisting levels of connectedness to nature (CN). This study examined PA in camp staff (n=62), in relation to Muir Woods, and its association with CN over the course of a seven day camp. A PA Scale (Williams & Vaske, 2003) and CN Scale (Mayer & Frantz, 2004) were administered to participants before and after camp staff training in Muir Woods. A repeated measures ANOVA found a significant increase in camp staff's PA to Muir Woods, in sub-constructs place identity (p < .01) and place dependence (p < .01), and an insignificant difference in CN (p < .10) after experiencing a weeklong activity. Spearman Rho correlations based on place dependence, place identity, and CN indicated that overall there is no relationship between PA and CN (r = -.123, r</italic = -.001, r</italic = -.071, r</italic = .006, r</italic = -.033, r</italic = .011).