Leave No Trace Youth Study

Will they leave what they find? The efficacy of a Leave No Trace education program for youth

Abstract

The authors explored the influences of a youth-focused Leave No Trace educational program on participants’ attitudes, behaviors, and nature connectedness. The study employed an experimental, equivalent control-group design and included survey and direct observation measures. Pretest and posttest surveys provided self-report measures of attitudes and nature connectedness, while direct observations examined participants’ behavior toward keeping or leaving objects found in nature. Participants who received the PEAK educational program reported positive attitude changes above and beyond participants who did not receive the program and left found objects more often than those in the control group.

Citation

Schwartz, F., Taff, B. D., Lawhon, B., Hodge, C., Newman, P., & Will, E. (2018). Will they leave what they find? The efficacy of a Leave No Trace education program for youth. Applied Environmental Education & Communication, 1-11.