By Viktoria Feucht, Paul Wilhelm Dierkes, Martin Bratteler, Anna Bresser, Sandra Buchberger, Jule Hadler, Andreas Haeser-Kalthoff, Elia Heule, Axel Kästner, Constanze Mager, João Neves, Kathrin Rapp Schürmann, Kathrin Monika Röper, Rebecca D. Schulte-Iserlohe, Lisa Schwarz, Tanja Spengler, Marcel Stawinoga, Ina Steinert, Franziska Waked, Stephan Worm, and Matthias Winfried Kleespies

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In this study, we collaborated with 20 zoos that had evaluated their educational programs. These zoos used questionnaires to measure participants’ connection to nature before and after they took part in the programs. We wanted to find out if demographic variables and program components influence how strongly the connection to nature changes due to the program. The demographic variables we analyzed were gender, age group, and how often the participant visited a zoo. Program components we analyzed included whether there was animal contact during the program, whether the program discussed conservation, and program length. Our study also considered whether program participants started with a low, medium, or high connection to nature at the beginning of the program. We found that programs had a stronger effect on increasing connection to nature if participants were initially low- or medium-connected. For participants with a low- or medium-connection to nature, having animal contact or discussing conservation during the program was especially helpful, as were longer programs. Further, the influence of the programs was less strong on adolescents and rare zoo visitors. For participants with a high connection to nature, the type of intervention or their demographics played a minor role in how strongly their connection to nature was affected by a program. They showed less change, possibly because they were already at the higher end of the scale. A limitation of the study is that we analyzed overarching trends rather than individual programs, which we broadly categorized for this purpose.

In summary, we found the effects of zoo education varied depending on participants’ level of connection to nature, demographic characteristics, and program components. Therefore, when conducting projects on nature connection or other variables, it is important for educators and researchers to consider such differences, bearing in mind that different baselines may produce different results.