A Competency Analysis of Waterpark Aquatic Professionals

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to further the knowledge base in the aquatics field and assist in the development of universal standards to ensure that competent managers are employed at waterpark type venues. Until recently, thanks in part to the establishment of the Model Aquatic Health Code (MAHC 2014), universal standards did not exist in aquatics. The development of standards in the field will help to ensure continuity in policies among all facility types, properly trained professionals, and ultimately safer environments for participants. Using a pair of five-point Likert scales to sample 600 aquatic professionals, this study sought to discover what key competencies were needed by waterpark professionals and which competencies needed further development specifically for waterpark professionals. Extrapolated from the results, we observed risk management was crucial to operations of waterparks and that programming was an area to examine further.