% dj,-** F1 ( F laYlotsscHootot !r Yre t-. 'lll' Hosrrraurv-Tourtsn ii'J;i,':1 lll cuux iY ^ND ^irs -t The Way Forwa rd: aFl!% 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia MISC005 INFLUENCE OF RECREATION SPECIALIZATION ON UNDERWATER BEHAVIOR: A CASE OF PERHENTIAN ISLAND Nurbaidura Salim Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia Azizi Bahauddin Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia Badaruddin Mohamed Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia ABSTRACT SCUBA diving activity is an increasing popular recreational activity that provides economic benefits to the coastal communities. Various unique marine creatures and reefs attract divers from all over the world leading to growing concern about coral damage. It is important to manage diver behavior since there are many dive operators offer unlimited diving packages, day and night diving from shore. Divers can minimize their impacts by practicing responsible diving behaviors. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between recreation specialization and diver’s underwater behavior in Perhentian Island. Data were collected using pilot survey on 50 divers in Perhentian Island and in-depth interview with several dive operators to support the findings. High skills and specialized divers tend not to touch the reefs and collect the dead pieces of the corals than the less skill divers. The study on diver underwater behavior is essential to encourage responsible SCUBA diving activity among divers and longevity of the coral reefs. Keywords: SCUBA Diving, Divers, Diving Skills, Underwater Behavior INTRODUCTION The uniqueness of coral reef ecosystems has led to various tourism activities such as scuba diving and snorkeling. Scuba diving is one of the rapidly growing recreational activities which act as an economic built for coastal communities. The popularity of scuba diving activity has indirectly improved the tourism industry making it as one of the multibillion dollar industries. Islanders perceive scuba diving activity as a business opportunity, where they tend to open dive shops at places near to the dive sites and at the same time; boost up the tourism industry at the tourist destination. Most of the coastal communities are socially and economically dependent upon coral reef ecosystem. Recreational diving on corals has increased for the past few decades due to a large number of tourists being trained, increased interest and also access to remote coral reef areas (Davis & Tisdell, 1995). According to PADI Diver Statistics (2010), there are about 135,000 certified divers and about 6,000 retail shops registered with PADI organization. Although dive tourism can offer economic benefits to the coastal communities, the presence of divers may lead to the reefs deterioration. As these figures and demand for dive tourism keep on increasing for the past 14 years, many environmentalist and academicians adduced their concerns over deterioration of the marine environments (Ong & Musa, 2011; Stolk, Markwell, & Jenkins, 2007). Divers play an important role in marine conservation as their active diving activities may result in negative impacts to the ecology including coral reefs. Their presence may harm the sustainability of coral reefs as some of the divers may touch, smash the coral reefs while they loss their buoyancy control or even accidentally kick them with their fins. Rouphael and Inglis in Barker & Robert (2004) state that fins caused most damage to the corals which then followed by hands, knees and equipment measures. Divers may unintentionally damage the corals and other reefs by breaking their skeletons and scrape their tissue. This scenario will tragically affected the survival of reefs as they generally at least a year to grow by 1.5mm. 1 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia How badly the ecology (in this context, reef ecosystems) will be affected, is literally depends to the extent of divers’ underwater behavior (Musa, Seng, Thirumoorthi, & Abessi, 2011). Inexperienced divers who dive less than 100 logged dives may be more likely to have contacts with the corals compared to the experienced divers (Davis, Harriot, MacNamara, Robert, & Austin, 1995). However, these damages can be reduced by proper diving techniques. Skilled divers can reduce their impacts on coral reefs by moving into the water with proper buoyancy and fin techniques. These basic techniques are essential to ensuring not only the continued health of the corals but also the longevity of the diving activity. Normative research provides one way in understanding the behavior of outdoor recreation settings. Anderson and Loomis (2011) suggest that social norm may influence the human behavior through the cognitive and emotional components of obligations and sanction. They state that when recreation takes place especially in a sensitive environment, for instance coral reefs ecosystem, understanding the shared norms of social group is important since the collective behaviors have potential to impact the health of the corals and longevity of the activity. Social norms can take place at various levels such as personal, group, community and society. Anderson and Loomis (2011) give a good example in understanding a normative belief as they stated that social norms may vary among groups within the same recreational activity. For instance, in a study of normative beliefs among skiers and snowboarders by Vaske, Dyar and Timmons (2004), it was found that highly skilled skier (advanced skiers) tend to be more concerned about disagreeable behavior (conflicts) of less skilled skiers. Therefore, in scuba diving context, it can be said that advanced divers were more likely to notice disagreeable behaviors of other divers especially less skilled divers (beginners). Presence of novice divers (beginners) could cause more contacts with the corals rather than the high skilled divers (advanced) as they are the most skilled in terms of diving experiences and underwater movement (Anderson & Loomis, 2011; Musa, et al., 2011; Townsend, 2003). Therefore, a better understanding on how social norms differ among subgroups of divers will assist the targeted management in conserving coral reefs. In this study, recreational specialization theory is used to segmenting divers into meaningful subgroups. This paper aims to examine the relationship between recreation specialization and underwater behavior among divers visiting Perhentian Island. LITERATURE REVIEW Recreation Specialization Recreational specialization as suggested by Bryan (1977) is defined as “a continuum of behavior from the general to the particular, reflected by equipment and skills used in the sport, and activity setting preferences.” Within the range, individuals may be categorized from novice to the specialist. Bryan in his research classified trout fishermen into four range of groups based on their equipments, skills used and preferences for specific recreation settings. Groups ranged from the least specialized “occasional fishermen,” to generalists “technique specialized” and highly specialized “technique-setting specialists”. Variations among recreationist reflect differences based on their prior experiences and commitment given to that particular activity. Bryan tested the concept of recreation specialization as he observed the anglers (respondents) by using developmental approach to describe their involvement in a recreational activity whereby individuals improved from low to high specialization over time accompanied by increasing experience and commitment to the activity. When individuals become specialized, they gain knowledge about an activity which then translated into more complex representations about the activity (McFarlane, 2004). This is quite similar to Bryan’s conceptualization whereby he stated that as progression occurs, one’s attitudes shift from a consumptive orientation to preservation and users prefer more natural conditions with less management intervention. Various studies about recreation specialization theory have been conducted (Anderson & Loomis, 2011; Bryan, 1977; McFarlane, 2004; Thapa, Graefe, & Meyer, 2005; Wöran & Arnberger, 2012) and applied to a number of various activity such as snowboarding (Vaske, et al., 2004), camping (McFarlane, 2004), scuba diving (Anderson & Loomis, 2011) 2 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia and hiking (Wöran & Arnberger, 2012). In the study of Julian Rock, Eastern Australia (Harriot, Davis, & Banks, 1997), number of contacts decline with the increasing diver experience and there was a trend towards fewer contacts with advanced diver training. Likewise, experienced recreationist tend to have better skills than beginners (inexperienced recreationist), are more focused on the activity they involved and at the same time, they are less tolerant of goal interference by another’s behavior (Jacob & Schreyer, 1980). Recreation specialization is a linear hierarchical progression whereby group members (from beginners to experts) in a particular activity can be ordered based on a few characteristics: (1) level of experience, (2) individual’s skill, (3) relationships, (4) equipment use, (5) orientation and (6) commitment towards the given activity (Thapa, et al., 2005; Unruh, 1979). Therefore, Ditton re-conceptualized recreation specialization as “a process by which recreation sub worlds and the subsequent ordered segment and intersect into new recreation sub worlds and their members along a continuum”. Previous research on level of specialization suggests that increase in activity involvement (by the recreationists) lead to more positive attitudes toward environmental concerns. For instance, anglers with high level of specialization tend to be much committed towards environmental conservation issues (Thapa, et al., 2005). In the context of scuba divers, Todd in Thapa, et al., (2005) stated that specialization components such as skills, commitment, experience, participation, amateur or professional development, knowledge and equipment increased from beginners to experts and then decreased for former experts (postexperts). Experience in an activity could range from that of “having little understanding” to being a “knowledgeable expert”. In the context of scuba divers, advanced divers (high experienced recreationist) may recognize the name of some underwater species than beginners. Ditton et.al in Anderson and Loomis (2011) suggested that more specialized recreationists will want to see their activity continue in a good quality way into the future. Scuba divers, for example, will definitely want the dive tourism to continue to grow so that they can dive sustainably. Therefore, most of the specialized recreationists are more likely to support the rules, norms and procedures associated with the given activity to ensure future participation. This proposition was supported in a study of Florida divers where level of specialization was positively related to marine-based environmental knowledge. Proenvironmental behavior was more common for specialized divers because they are more supportive of management practices that shall reduce the environmental impacts on the natural resources (Thapa, et al., 2005). Conceptual Framework Based on the theory of recreation specialization as discussed in the literature review, it is expected that more specialized recreationists tend to follow the rules, norms and procedures while diving to ensure that the coral reef diving continues in the future. At the same time, as they become more specialized from beginners (less skilled diver) to advanced divers (high skilled diver), they tend to give more commitment towards sustainable diving activity as they will want to preserve the survival of uniquely underwater marine life. In the context of scuba diving on coral reefs, the future of diving activity is largely dependent on the health of coral reef resources; a factor that is influenced by divers behavior. METHODOLOGY This study involves 50 randomly selected respondents through pilot survey and informal interviews with the owners of the dive shops. 6 dive shops were selected in this survey and appointments to conduct interviews with the owners were made before arriving at the dive shops. The selected dive shops are located in Perhentian Besar Island such Pasir Panjang, Coral View Island and Coral Bay Island. Interviews with owners of the dive shops took about 30 minutes to 1 hour. The questionnaire consisted of several sections which includes the measurement of the following variables: diving attitude, underwater behavior, recreation specialization and demographic profile. Only English questionnaires were provided in this 3 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia study. The sections consisted of personality of scuba divers (Part A), awareness (Part B), level of experience (Part C) and demographic profile (Part D). Permission was requested from the dive shop owners whether the survey can be conducted before distributing the questionnaires to the respondents. Questionnaires were randomly distributed to the divers in the dive shops. Divers who had just got back from diving were also asked to participate in the pilot survey. There are some respondents who refused to answer the questionnaires while some respondents gave good feedbacks during the conducted survey. FINDINGS A total of 50 divers were approached during in-person intercepts in the Perhentian Island. The respondents were firstly asked whether they would like to participate in the survey. Out of 50 questionnaires distributed, only 45 questionnaires are valid. Demographic Profile Table 1 shows the demographic profile of the divers in Perhentian Island. The vast majority of the respondents are male (71.1%) while female constituted 28.9%. Divers between 20 and 27 years old made up 57.8% of the total respondents. This is followed by 35.6% of those between 28 and 35 years old and 4.4% between 36 and 43 years old. With regards to ethnicity, others ethnicity made up the majority respondents (66.7%), followed by Malay and Chinese ethnicity with 20.0% and 11.1% respectively. Since others ethnicity made up the most respondents, most of them were from Europe, Oceania, North America and Middle East with 53.3%, 6.7 % and 4.4% respectively. On the other hand, Malaysian divers constituted 31.1%. Educational background was not included in the table since all respondents were graduates from universities (100%). ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Table 1 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Divers’ Experience A total of 22 respondents (48.9%) have been involved in scuba diving activity between 1 and 5 years. Those involved in 6-10 years and more than 11 years represented 22.2% and 6.6% respectively. Four levels of scuba diving certificates were measured and most respondents were at Open Water Certification and Advanced Certification (31.1%). These were followed by Dive Master Certification (24.4%) and Dive Instructor Certification (13.3%). In terms selfrating experience, majority of divers (35.6%) rated themselves as expert level. This is followed by 33.3 % who rated themselves as beginners and 31.1% as intermediate divers. With regards to total diving trips, majority respondents made less than 50 dive trips (53.3%) while 22.2% respondents made more than 201 dive trips. Those who made less than 50 dive trips were among open water divers and advanced divers. On the other hand, divers with more than 100 dives were among dive masters and dive instructors. Based on the literature review, divers with less than 100 dives were classified as inexperienced divers (62.2%) while those with more than 100 dives were classified as experienced divers (37.8%). Based on a research conducted by Davis, et.al, (1995) and personal interviews with dive masters in Perhentian Island, inexperienced divers are more likely to make contacts with corals, tend to loss buoyancy control, touched corals with their hands and took pieces of dead corals than experienced divers (dive master and dive instructor). Experience divers are more confident with themselves while diving than inexperience divers. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Table 2 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia Diver behavior obligations and level of specialization The mean scored for all behavior sanctions were relatively high (range from 3.20 to 4.62). This clearly indicates that divers would feel moderately or very embarrassed if seen engaging in any of the behavior sanctions as in Table 3. Item “broke off pieces of live corals” scored the highest mean score (mean = 4.62, SD = 0.747) as divers reported that they would feel very embarrassed to touch and break any live corals while diving. On the other hand, divers would feel moderately embarrassed to lost buoyancy control while diving. Experience divers (37.8%) answered 5 = “extremely embarrassed” in a 1-5 scale if they lost buoyancy control while diving. Divers reported that they would feel very to extremely embarrassed (mean values between 4 to 5) if seen engaging in two of nine behaviors, while other behaviors would lead to moderately high embarrassment levels. Based on one-way ANOVA, diver norms did not differ by specialization level (beginner, intermediate and advance) for all of behavior items except for “losing buoyancy control” and “touch marine mammals”. The results showed that there are significant differences between beginner and expert and between expert and intermediate divers in terms of buoyancy control (F= 5.745, p = 0.006). The result is expected as experienced divers (advanced divers) are less likely to have contacts with corals than inexperienced divers (beginners) (Musa, et al., 2011). There is also a significant different between experts and beginners in terms of touching the marine mammals (F=5.096, p=0.011). Expert divers perceive diving as an activity to observe the untouched underwater nature without touching or disturbing their ecosystem. Table 4 shows divers’ perceptions towards contacts between divers and corals based on priority. Divers reported that contacts between divers and corals usually happened when an individual has poor buoyancy control and fin techniques (mean = 4.41, SD = 0.658). This situation usually happened among the first-timers or beginners since they have less selfconfidence and easily get panicked (mean = 3.48, SD = 1.110) when they do their first dive. Besides that, poor swimming techniques (mean = 4.07, SD = 0.818) also led to contacts between divers and coral reefs. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Table 3 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Table 4 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… CONCLUSION The sustainability of diving in corals ecosystem are largely dependent on the continued health of the reef resources. While diving tourism provide economic benefits to the islander, divers may also indirectly impact corals through their underwater behaviors. In general, divers in Perhentian Island felt obligated to engage in behaviors that would protect coral reef resources. The highest level of behavior obligations was associated with three behaviors that would impact coral reefs is: [not] break pieces of live corals, [not] left garbage on the sea floor and [not] remove shells from a reef. Even when moderated by the behavior of telling others not to touch corals or lost buoyancy control, these behaviors emerged among the strongest obligations. Divers indicated that they would feel very embarrassed if they break off pieces of live corals, purposely left garbage on the sea floor, take pieces of dead corals and remove shell from a reef. When behavior sanctions were compared by level of specialization, there are a few differences emerged among divers. Measures of diver obligations resulted in two behaviors that differ by diver specialization level with high embarrassment for losing buoyancy control and touching marine mammals greater among more specialized divers (expert diver). These behavioral obligation obligations varied in the direction predicted by the theory of specialization (Anderson & Loomis, 2011). However, it should be noted that the magnitude of 5 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia these differences was small. As these findings support specialization theory, the influence of specialization on social norms may be relatively small in the context of diving. Although this study only focused on Perhentian Island, the findings are likely applicable to other islands in Malaysia where recreation activities occurs in the sensitive ecological environment. Responsible diving behaviors are important to protect coral longevity. As this study on used a pilot survey, the next data collection should be more precise and covered other behavior obligations that measure diver underwater behavior. Future study may want to explore irresponsible underwater behaviors among divers. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The authors would like to extend their appreciation to the Universiti Sains Malaysia for the Research University Grant entitled 'Tourism Capacity and Impact Studies' [Grant No. 1001/PTS/8660011] that makes this study and paper possible. REFERENCES Anderson, L. E., & Loomis, D. K. (2011). SCUBA Diver Specialization and Behavior Norms at Coral Reefs. Coastal Management, 39(5), 478-491. doi: 10.1080/08920753.2011.598813 Barker, N. H. L., & Roberts, C. M. (2004). Scuba diver behaviour and the management of diving impacts on coral reefs. Biological Conservation, 120(4), 481-489. doi: 10.1016/j.biocon.2004.03.021 Bryan, H. (1977). Leisure value systems and recreational specialization: The case of trout fishermen. Journal of Leisure Research 22, 233-257 Davis, D., Harriot, V. J., MacNamara, C., Robert, L., & Austin, S. (1995). Conflicts in marine protected area: scuba divers, economics, ecology and management in Julian Rocks Aquatic Reserve. Australian Parks and Leisure, 31(1), 29-35. Davis, D., & Tisdell, C. (1995). Recreational scuba-diving and carrying capacity in marine protected areas. Ocean & Coastal Management, 26(1), 19-40. doi: 10.1016/09645691(95)00004-l Harriot, V. J., Davis, D., & Banks, S. A. (1997). Recreational Diving and Its Impact in Marine Protected Areas in Eastern Australia A Journal of the Human Environment (Vol. 26, pp. 173-179). Stockholm: Royal Swedish Academy of Science Jacob, G. R., & Schreyer, R. (1980). Conflict in Outdoor Recreation: A Theoritical Perspective Journal of Leisure Research, 12(4), 368-380. McFarlane, B. L. (2004). Recreation Specialization and Site Choice Among Vehicle-Based Campers. Leisure Sciences, 26(3), 309-322. doi: 10.1080/01490400490461981 Musa, G., Seng, W. T., Thirumoorthi, T., & Abessi, M. (2011). The Influence of Scuba Divers' Personality, Experience, and Demographic Profile on their Underwater Behavior. Tourism in Marine Environments, 7(1), 1-14. doi: 10.3727/154427310x12826772784757 Ong, T. F., & Musa, G. (2011). SCUBA divers' underwater responsible behaviour: can environmental concern and divers' attitude make a difference? Current Issues in Tourism, 1-23. doi: 10.1080/13683500.2011.604407 PADI Diver Statistics. (2010). PADI Worldwide Membership History Retrieved July 16, 2012, from http://www.padi.com/scuba/uploadedFiles/2010%20WW%20Statistics.pdf Stolk, P., Markwell, K., & Jenkins, J. M. (2007). Artificial Reefs as Recreational Scuba Diving Resources: A Critical Review of Research. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 15(4), 331-350. doi: 10.2167/jost651.0 Thapa, B., Graefe, A. R., & Meyer, L. A. (2005). Moderator and Mediator Effects of Scuba Diving Specialization on Marine-Based Environmental Knowledge-Behavior Contingency. The Journal of Environmental Education, 37(1), 53-67. doi: 10.3200/joee.37.1.53-68 Townsend, C. (2003). Marine Ecotourism through Education : A Case Study of Divers in British Virgin Islands In J. C. Wilson & B. Garrod (Eds.), Marine Ecotourism: Issues and Experiences Sydney Channel View Publication 6 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia Unruh, D. R. (1979). Characteristics And Types Of Participation In Social Worlds. Symbolic Interaction, 2(2), 115-130. doi: 10.1525/si.1979.2.2.115 Vaske, J., Dyar, R., & Timmons, N. (2004). Skill Level and Recreation Conflict among Skiers and Snowboarders Leisure Sciences, 26, 215-225. Retrieved from http://www.educ.uidaho.edu/dpaul/ED584Fall2009/vaske%20j%202004.pdf doi:10.1080/01490400490432145 Wöran, B., & Arnberger, A. (2012). Exploring Relationships Between Recreation Specialization, Restorative Environments and Mountain Hikers’ Flow Experience. Leisure Sciences, 34(2), 95-114. doi: 10.1080/01490400.2012.652502 APPENDICES Table 1: Demographic Profile Category Gender Category Name Male Female Frequency 32 13 Percentage (%) 71.1 28.9 Age 20-27 years old 28-35 years old 36-43 years old 44 years old and above 26 16 2 1 57.8 35.6 4.4 2.2 Ethnicity Malay Chinese Indian Others 9 5 1 30 20.0 11.1 2.2 66.7 Origin Malaysia North America Europe Middle East Oceania 14 2 24 2 3 31.1 4.4 53.3 4.4 6.7 Table 2: Divers’ experience Category Involvement in scuba diving activity Category Name Frequency Percentage (%) Less than 1 year 1-5 years 6-10 years More than 11 years 10 22 10 3 22.2 48.9 22.2 6.6 Level of diving certificate Open Water Advanced Dive Master Dive Instructor 14 14 11 6 31.1 31.1 24.4 13.3 Beginner Intermediate Expert 15 14 16 33.3 31.1 35.6 Divers level 7 4th Asia-Euro Conference 2012 in Tourism, Hospitality & Gastronomy THE WAY FORWARD: EXPLORING MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES 28 November – 1 December, 2012 Lakeside Campus, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia Total diving trips Less than 50 51-100 101-150 151-200 201 and above 24 4 3 4 10 53.3 8.9 6.7 8.9 22.2 Table 3: Diver behavior obligations Variables Lost buoyancy control Touch corals with hands Took pieces of dead corals Touch marine mammals Left garbage on the sea floor Broke off pieces of live corals Feed fish Removed shell from a reef Knowingly anchor a boat Mean* 3.20 3.76 4.04 3.89 4.56 4.62 3.53 4.07 3.93 SD 1.307 1.190 1.147 1.125 0.918 0.747 1.424 1.156 1.280 n 45 45 45 44 45 45 45 45 43 *Mean scores are based on a 1-5 scale, with the categories 1=”not embarrassed at all”, 2 = “slightly embarrassed”, 3 = “moderately embarrassed”, 4 = “very embarrassed” and 5 = “extremely embarrassed”. Answers given in response to the statement “On the scale of 1-5, imagine that you did the following at a coral reef and others saw you. How embarrassed would you feel?” Table 4: Diver perception on contact between divers and corals based on priority Variables When divers are panicked Poor swimming techniques Poor buoyancy control & fin technique Incorrect weighting Ignorance about coral conservation Underwater photography Walking on the corals Mean* 3.48 4.07 4.41 3.68 4.00 2.93 3.82 SD 1.110 0. 818 0.658 0.934 1.220 1.149 1.369 n 44 44 44 44 44 44 44 *Mean scores are based on a 1-5 scale, with the categories 1=”not a priority”, 2 = “low priority”, 3 = “medium priority”, 4 = “high priority” and 5 = “essential”. Answers given in response to the statement “On the scale of 1-5, based on your priority, when usually the contact between divers and corals happened?” 8