Post-occupancy evaluation of zoo Atlanta’s Giant Panda Conservation Center: Staff and visitor reactions
Publication Type: |
Journal Article |
Year of Publication: |
2003 |
Authors: |
Megan Wilson, Angela Kelling, Laura Poline, Mollie Bloomsmith, Terry Maple |
Publication/Journal: |
Zoo Biology |
Publisher: |
A Wiley Company, Inc., Wiley Subscription Services |
Keywords: |
ailuropoda melanoleuca, education, poe, welfare, zoos |
ISBN: |
1098-2361 |
Abstract:
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.10102.abs Construction of a new zoo animal exhibit impacts animals, visitors, and staff, and considerable attention should be paid to evaluation of the exhibit. In November 1999, Zoo Atlanta received two giant pandas from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Sichuan, China, which presented an opportunity to evaluate the new giant panda exhibit. The present study documents the reactions of staff and visitors to Zoo Atlanta’s Giant Panda Conservation Center by a post-occupancy evaluation (POE). Confidential interviews were conducted with 23 staff, and 145 zoo visitors completed questionnaires. Staff and visitors were asked to assign quality ratings to specific areas of the exhibit, and complete a series of open-ended questions. The findings suggest that staff and visitors evaluated Zoo Atlanta’s giant panda exhibit favorably. On a five-point scale, the exhibit received mean ratings of 3.64 from the staff and 4.50 from the visitors. With a few exceptions, most areas of the exhibit met or exceeded staff expectations. Staff and visitors identified a number of strengths and weaknesses of the exhibit. Staff most frequently recommended changes to the pandas’ space and the ability to address husbandry issues, while a large number of visitors did not suggest any changes, or did not respond to the question. Visitors that did respond to the question most often recommended that the zoo display additional pandas and modify the pandas’ space. There were no significant differences in visitors’ ratings of the different areas of the enclosure, or in their overall impressions of the exhibit, as a function of the pandas’ location. The results are examined in terms of general implications for zoo exhibit design, construction, and evaluation, and in light of the goals of this facility. The study highlights the benefits of conducting POEs in a zoo setting. Zoo Biol 22:365–382, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.