Benefits and Costs of Working in National Park Service: Focus Group Findings

Abstract

The various parks that make up the National Park Service (NPS) serve as popular destinations for individuals and families alike, seeking rest, relaxation and beautiful views. The work necessary to upkeep the parks across the country is extensive. These parks are maintained by approximately 20,000 employees (both permanent and temporary). However, the toll it takes has not been examined in depth. Researchers conducted qualitative thematic analysis on three focus groups of NPS employees at a remote NPS unit in southwestern United States (US). Themes found include several costs and benefits to working for NPS as well as themes for burnout and opportunities for improvement. Benefits of working for NPS included: social support, vocational balance, concrete benefits, adventure, and NPS’s strong mission statement. Costs of working for NPS included: feelings of being overworked, social costs, leadership and management issues, and the inherent dangers of the job. Based on empirical literature, researchers coded the following burnout themes:overwhelming exhaustion, a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment, and feelings of disengagement and cynicism. Opportunities for agency improvement included: increased staffing, increased mental health resources, the provision of leadership/management training, and decreasing mental health stigma. The researchers' strong background in providing peer support training to first responders and military poised them well to establish peer support for NPS employees and provide telemental health at no cost for workers and their family members. This paper describes the results of a first qualitative step toward cultural awareness in a program of research with the long-range aim to improve NPS workers’ behavioral health and well-being in jobs that are often more avocation than vocation.