Abstract

VAN DER MERWE, P  and  SAAYMAN, M. What makes a hunting experience memorable?. JCMAN [online]. 2015, vol.12, n.1, pp.590-614. ISSN 1815-7440.

Growth in the number of game farms and hunting lodges (operators) in South Africa has created fierce competition among these hunting operations. In order to remain competitive, it is important to determine what hunters regard as important in order to enjoy a memorable experience. The purpose of this study is to determine the aspects that contribute to a memorable hunting experience. In addition, the study also determines which socio-demographic and behavioural variables influence memorability of the hunting experience. This was achieved by conducting a structured survey under biltong hunters in South Africa. Complete sampling was used. The data analysis consisted of three analyses, namely Factor analysis, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and t-tests. Spearmen's correlation coefficient was calculated to determine the relationship between ranked variables. The main findings of this study are that socio-demographic and behavioural aspects do impact on the motives of hunters to hunt and enjoy a memorable hunting experience. Occupations, method of the hunt and to hunt alone or in groups, exert the greatest impact on the said motives of hunters. It is also the first time that such a study has been conducted among South African biltong hunters.

Keywords : hunting behaviour; hunting tourism; memorable experience; socio-demographic; trophy hunting; variables.

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