In search of the Primitive-Urban continuum: The Dimensional Structure of Outdoor Recreation Settings

A primitive-urban continuum has been a dominant feature of the psychological representation of large-scale environments and the basis of land classification systems for outdoor recreation planning. The ubiquity of the primitive-urban continuum is examined with respect to experiential (as opposed to perceptual) variation in outdoor recreation settings. A multidimensional scaling analysis of 42 rivers was conducted using reported recreation experiences as proximity measures. Two interpretable dimensions were revealed. Waterflow intensity (whitewater) and trip duration were more strongly associated with experiential variation across river settings than the primitive-urban continuum.