Date of Award:

5-1976

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Applied Economics

Department name when degree awarded

Agricultural Economics

Committee Chair(s)

John E. Keith

Committee

John E. Keith

Committee

Chris Lewis

Committee

John Hunt

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe and evaluate the consumer characteristics of boaters in Utah and Idaho. This has entailed a descriptive analysis of boater's socio-economic profiles, facilities and equipment, preferences and attitudes, and activity patterns.

Concomitantly a test of the hypothesis that boating is not a homogenous recreational activity was attempted. Two statistical analyses were carried out. The first test was to determine whether the profiles of boaters having different activity specialities differed. This was accomplished by finding the means of selected boater characteristics (i.e., income, children, length of boat) for each boating speciality. The L.S.D. multiple means comparison test was then used to determine if a statistically significant difference existed between the means of each activity. The second test determined whether the effect of selected boater characteristics on activity levels was the same when regressed on the three dependent variables of hours fishing, hours skiing, and hours pleasure boating.

Boaters were found to have higher incomes, more education and higher percentages of household heads working in the highest paying professional, technical, and managerial occupations.

The results of the multiple mean and regression analysis support the hypothesis that boaters specialyzing in the different boating activities are not homogeneous. Boaters specializing in water skiing, pleasure boating and fishing were found to take different types of boating trips, have different socioeconomic levels, and own different kinds of boating equipment.

Fishermen were the most divergent group. They took fewer trips but raveled longer distances than skiing enthusiasts. Fishermen were found to own smaller boats with less horsepower. Boaters specializing in fishing were also found to have lower socioeconomic levels.

Checksum

82fbca6eb365a4e70c416b98f99cf8fb

Download

Share

COinS

Copyright for this work is retained by the student. If you have any questions regarding the inclusion of this work in the Digital Commons, please email us at .