Women and the Wilderness: a Review of Barriers to Participation, Current Coping Strategies, and Guidance for Future Programs

This literature review discusses the obstacles that women face in participating in outdoor recreation, the ways in which they are currently navigating these obstacles, and discusses how the currently literature (and the gaps within it) can inform our future research and policy making. The obstacles women currently face in wilderness recreation surround gender roles and social expectations, lack of early skill-development and confidence, and a gendered geographic fear. Currently, women are navigating these obstacles by either conforming or rejecting gender roles in their participation, choosing to develop skills in female-only environments, and taking means to increase perceived safety such as carrying weapons and avoiding recreating outdoors alone. I argue that many of the ways in which women are currently navigating these issues takes away from the initial draw of outdoor recreation. This article ends with a call for more research and some advice for future programs that encourages all-female elements, redefined leadership roles, reduced use of heavy stress and exhaustion for skill development, and better advocation for safety measures and potential threats in a given activity