Shooting Sports Summit Mark Damian Duda & Frank Briganti Tuesday, June 24, 2008

1. The Future of Hunting and the Shooting Sports: Research-Based Recruitment and Retention Strategies Shooting Sports Summit Mark Damian Duda & Frank Briganti Tuesday, June 24, 2008 Produced under a grant for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Federal Aid, Federal Aid in Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Grant Agreement CT-M-6-0

2. Charting the course for the industry’s future…. Responsive Management & NSSF

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4. Focus of Fish and Wildlife Management Fish and Wildlife Populations Fish and Wildlife Professionals Fish and Wildlife Habitats Human Populations

5. 650,000 5.4 million Responsive Management & NSSF

6. 40,000 1 million Responsive Management & NSSF

7. rarely seen 5.5 million Responsive Management & NSSF

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9. Focus of Fish and Wildlife Management Fish and Wildlife Populations Fish and Wildlife Professionals Fish and Wildlife Habitats Human Populations

10. Methodology • Literature Review • Focus Groups • Surveys • General Population • Active Hunters • Ex-Hunters • Active Shooters • Ex-Shooters • Focus Groups Responsive Management & NSSF

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13. n = 5,040 general population (includes hunters and shooters) • n = 1,053 hunters and shooters Responsive Management & NSSF

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15. Alabama Youth Dove Hunt Responsive Management & NSSF

16. First Shots Responsive Management & NSSF

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18. 261 pages • 196 action items • Focus on Problem Solution • Action items range from: • What to understand: changing demographics and time issues • How to communicate: legal, regulated hunting; safe and controlled • How to conduct R & R programs: non-lethal firearms at first (“training wheels”) • What not to do: single-parent households • No silver bullet, but lots of shot Responsive Management & NSSF

19. Participation in Hunting and the Shooting Sports Responsive Management & NSSF

20. Hunting Participation Responsive Management & NSSF

21. Between 14 million and 18 million U.S. residents participate in hunting in any given year. Responsive Management & NSSF

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23. Active hunters are more likely than are inactive hunters to have the following characteristics: social support • Currently has family members who hunt. • Has fished in the past 5 years. • Has camped in the past 5 years. • Has friends who hunt. • Is between 18 and 34 years old. • Has gone boating in the past 5 years. • Has been invited to go hunting with a friend. • Has gone hiking in the past 5 years. • Rates access for hunting in state of residence as excellent or good. • Has viewed wildlife in the past 5 years. • Is male. • Was first taken hunting by his or her father. • Lives in a small city or town or a rural area. • Grew up in a household with firearms. • Was younger than the median age when first went hunting. younger initiated by father initiated at a young age Responsive Management & NSSF

24. Inactive hunters are more likely than are active hunters to have the following characteristics: no social support • Does not currently have family members who hunt. • Does not have friends who hunt. • Has not been invited to go hunting with a friend. • Is 35 years old or older. • Is female. • Was not first taken hunting by his or her father. • Lives in a large city/urban area or a suburban area. • Did not grow up in a household with firearms. • Rates access for hunting in state of residence as fair or poor. • Started hunting when older than the median initiation age of hunters. older not initiated by father urban initiated at an older age Responsive Management & NSSF

25. Trends in Hunting Participation Responsive Management & NSSF

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27. Urbanization • Aging Society • Fewer Whites • Less Access • Less Opportunity Responsive Management & NSSF

28. Urbanization • Loss of land • Loss of rural people • Dilution of the hunting and shooting culture • Less free time and more time to travel • More structured time Responsive Management & NSSF

29. Hunting and shooting are often “unstructured” activities that exist in a structured 21st Century. • Action Item 48. Make efforts to get hunters and shooters to schedule their activities…. People make time for scheduled activities. A campaign to “put it on the calendar” should be considered, targeted at active hunters and shooters. Responsive Management & NSSF

30. Where Did the Hunters Go? Responsive Management & NSSF

31. Action Item 34. Do not spend limited agency resources targeting single-parent households for recruitment and retention efforts. Responsive Management & NSSF

32. Trends in hunting participation need to be put into context of trends regarding participation in outdoor recreation as a whole. Research suggests declining trends in most outdoor recreation. (Pergams and Zaradic, 2008) Responsive Management & NSSF

33. Shooting Participation Responsive Management & NSSF

34. Almost 19 million U.S. residents participate in shooting sports in any given year, excluding hunting, bowhunting, and archery. Responsive Management & NSSF

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37. Trends in Shooting Participation Responsive Management & NSSF

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39. Hunting Initiation Responsive Management & NSSF

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44. Hunting Motivations Responsive Management & NSSF

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47. Dissatisfactions Among Active Hunters Responsive Management & NSSF

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50. Reasons for Hunting Desertion Responsive Management & NSSF