Visitor responses to an ethnic garden display in a botanical garden

Melissa Steinhauer, M. A. Brennan, Dennis McConnell, Carrie Reinhardt-Adams, David Sandrock

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

Program developers and administrators in settings such as botanical gardens are increasingly in need of information on the needs and interests of various groups. A need also exists for information on how to broaden interests in garden displays (exhibits including both plants and signs centered on a theme or topic) and increase the diversity of visitors. This article reports on research that explored visitor perceptions of an ethnic garden display highlighting African-American contributions to horticulture. The research also examined overall attitudes toward a botanic garden in Florida where the display was constructed. The results suggested that race did not affect visitors' overall attitudes toward a botanic garden. Younger visitors, those who visit gardens more, and weekend visitors had a more positive attitude toward botanic gardens. Race was, however, related to visitor attitude toward the ethnic display. African-Americans liked the African-American horticulture display more than any other ethnic group. Sociodemographic characteristics, frequency of botanic garden visits, and time of year for visits all shaped visitor attitudes and opinions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)537-543
Number of pages7
JournalHortTechnology
Volume17
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2007

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Horticulture

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