In the U.S., population growth and domestic migration is placing increasing pressure on natural landscapes and their provision of ecosystem services. In this investigation, we document residents’ perceptions of shifting use patterns of an aquatic nature-based resource situated in a rapidly growing urban area over an eight-year period from 2008 to 2016. Specifically, we examined the drivers of residents’ perceptions of setting density and the cognitive and behavioral coping strategies they employed to maintain psychological homeostasis. While we saw no statistical mean difference in our measure of crowding from 2008 to 2016, crowding’s normative antecedents (preference for and expectation of encounters) and affective outcome (enjoyment) all varied over time. In 2016, respondents’ preferences and expectations for encounters with others were both more than preferred or expected compared to 2008. Nevertheless, 2016 respondents reported a significantly more enjoyable experience compared to those sampled in 2008. Path modeling revealed that the negative effect of expectation and preference on respondents’ perceptions of crowding and enjoyment was significantly stronger in 2008 resulting in diminished enjoyment when compared to 2016. Findings illustrate that despite substantive change in social and environmental conditions over time, residents have maintained their enjoyment by modifying their normative expectations and preferences. This is despite changes in encounter norm expectations and preference. As urban proximate communities continue to grow in the U.S., tradeoffs will occur in the quality of nature-based recreation opportunities. Managing this transition requires an understanding of the psychological mechanisms people use to navigate change.

在美国，人口增长和国内迁徙给自然景观及其提供的生态系统服务带来越来越大的压力。在这项调查中，我们记录了居民对自2008年至2016年的八年期间位于快速增长的城市地区的一种水生自然资源的使用方式转移的看法。特别是，我们研究了居民对环境的看法的驱动力他们用来维持心理动态平衡的密度以及认知和行为应对策略。虽然从2008年到2016年，我们的拥挤度没有统计学上的平均差异，但随着时间的流逝，拥挤的规范性前因（对相遇的偏好和期望）和情感结局（享受）都发生了变化。在2016年，与2008年相比，受访者对与他人相遇的偏好和期望都超过了期望值或期望值。然而，与2008年的样本相比，2016年受访者的体验要愉悦得多。路径模型显示，期望和偏好对受访者的负面影响与2008年相比，2008年的拥挤和娱乐感明显增强，导致娱乐感降低。研究结果表明，尽管社会和环境条件随时间发生了实质性变化，但居民通过修改规范性期望和偏好来保持娱乐感。尽管遇到了规范的期望和偏好发生了变化，但这仍然存在。随着美国附近城市社区的不断发展，权衡将发生在基于自然的休闲机会的质量上。管理这种过渡需要了解人们用于驾驭变化的心理机制。