Tara L. Teel

Understanding the Diversity of Public Interests in Wildlife Conservation

North American state wildlife agencies are increasingly faced with the challenge of effectively representing a diverse public. With increasing social conflict over wildlife issues, the future of wildlife conservation hinges on preparedness of the profession to respond to this challenge. In the interest of finding ways to improve response, 19 agencies in the western U.S. joined forces to initiate an investigation that would provide a better understanding of the diversity of wildlife-related interests in the region. Specific objectives, accomplished through use of a mail survey administered in 2004, were to categorize people on the basis of their value orientations toward wildlife and explore how different groups were distributed across states and to examine differences on sociodemographic characteristics and attitudes toward wildlife-related topics among groups. The focus was on two orientations: domination (view of wildlife that prioritizes human well-being over wildlife and treats wildlife in utilitarian terms); and mutualism (view of wildlife as capable of relationships of trust with humans and defined by a desire for companionship with wildlife). Four types of people were identified on the basis of these orientations. Types differed in their geographic distribution and wildlife-related attitudes and behaviors, revealing how value orientations can form the foundation for conflict on wildlife issues. Our characterizations of stakeholder groups offer a framework that can be applied over time and across geographic scales to improve conservation planning efforts and inform broader thinking about the social aspects of wildlife conservation.

The Need and Theoretical Basis for Exploring Wildlife Value Orientations Cross-Culturally

Research in the United States suggests wildlife value orientations are changing as part of a broader shift in values. Specifically, a shift from materialist to post-materialist values occurring with modernization is linked to a rise in mutualism orientations, viewing wildlife as capable of relationships of trust with humans and as deserving of rights and caring. Although it is conceivable that growth in mutualism is a global phenomenon, little is known on a worldwide scale about the cognitive basis for human–wildlife relationships. The purpose of the investigation summarized throughout this special issue was to contribute to the need for research in this area by exploring wildlife value orientations across cultures. We began our investigation by asking whether mutualism could be detected as an orientation in societies outside the United States and by developing a method for cross-cultural value orientation assessment. Here we summarize the purpose and theoretical approach to this investigation.

The Potential for Conflict Index: A Graphic Approach to Practical Significance of Human Dimensions Research

To facilitate the understanding and applicability of human dimensions findings, this article develops a formula for computing a Potential for Conflict Index (PCI) and a graphic technique for presenting the results. This approach (1) conveys information about a distributions central tendency, dispersion, and form simultaneously; (2) uses a graphic display that allows easy assimilation of research findings; and (3) places the findings in the context of managerial concern. Computed values for PCI range from 0 to 1, where 0 indicates no conflict and 1 indicates maximum conflict. Data are presented from a recent wildlife values project to illustrate the computation and graphic display of the PCI for univariate and bivariate situations. Researchers are encouraged to adopt this approach or variations of it to improve the understandability of their research results.

Mainstreaming the social sciences in conservation

Despite broad recognition of the value of social sciences and increasingly vocal calls for better engagement with the human element of conservation, the conservation social sciences remain misunderstood and underutilized in practice. The conservation social sciences can provide unique and important contributions to societys understanding of the relationships between humans and nature and to improving conservation practice and outcomes. There are 4 barriers-ideological, institutional, knowledge, and capacity-to meaningful integration of the social sciences into conservation. We provide practical guidance on overcoming these barriers to mainstream the social sciences in conservation science, practice, and policy. Broadly, we recommend fostering knowledge on the scope and contributions of the social sciences to conservation, including social scientists from the inception of interdisciplinary research projects, incorporating social science research and insights during all stages of conservation planning and implementation, building social science capacity at all scales in conservation organizations and agencies, and promoting engagement with the social sciences in and through global conservation policy-influencing organizations. Conservation social scientists, too, need to be willing to engage with natural science knowledge and to communicate insights and recommendations clearly. We urge the conservation community to move beyond superficial engagement with the conservation social sciences. A more inclusive and integrative conservation science-one that includes the natural and social sciences-will enable more ecologically effective and socially just conservation. Better collaboration among social scientists, natural scientists, practitioners, and policy makers will facilitate a renewed and more robust conservation. Mainstreaming the conservation social sciences will facilitate the uptake of the full range of insights and contributions from these fields into conservation policy and practice.

Human–Black Bear Conflict in Urban Areas: An Integrated Approach to Management Response

Human–black bear conflict is a persistent wildlife management problem in North America. Conflicts in urban areas are linked to continued growth and expansion of human populations as well as increased availability of anthropogenic attractants (e.g., garbage, birdfeed). Responding to urban bear conflicts can present difficult and highly publicized management decisions. This challenge highlights the need to understand the basis for resident behavior and perceptions in relation to human–black bear conflict situations. Randomly selected residents (n = 317) of two Colorado communities with frequent human–black bear conflicts responded to Internet and mail questionnaires measuring attitudes toward urban black bears and preferences for management actions. Fifty percent of respondents held positive attitudes, 15% expressed negative attitudes, and 35% were mixed. Attitudes and situational elements influenced the acceptability of commonly used management responses to human–bear conflict. Implications of this research include anticipating support for management actions and communication of management goals with the public.

Understanding the cognitive basis for human-wildlife relationships as a key to successful protected-area management

Wildlife is a critical component of protected areas worldwide. It can serve not only as a primary attraction or an enjoyable part of the visitor experience but also as a source of conflict. Managing wildlife in this context requires a broadbased approach that can account for the myriad factors underlying conservation effectiveness, including the nature of peoples relationships with wildlife. These relationships stem from the cognitive foundation that shapes human behavior toward wildlife. Our theory of wildlife value orientations contends that, at an individual level, broad cultural ideals or value orientations form the basis for more specific cognitions that in turn drive individual action. We extend this cognitive hierarchy framework to account for the role of societal forces that give rise to cultural values and their orientations over time. Using empirical data from two cases, we surview this micro-macro approach and explore its implications for protected-area management. First, data from a nineteen-state study conducted in 2004 via mail survey in the United States show how two contrasting orientations—domination and mutualism—produce different attitudes and behaviors toward wildlife. Hierarchical linear modeling of these data supports a societal-level shift from domination to mutualism in response to modernization. Second, a 2007-8 exploratory application of our approach in ten European countries provides further evidence of the role of value orientations in shaping individual response to wildlife issues. Together, these studies highlight the importance of multilevel models for exploring the social aspects of wildlife and protected-area management.

A Primer on Anti-Angling Philosophy and Its Relevance for Recreational Fisheries in Urbanized Societies

ABSTRACT In some industrialized countries, recreational fishing has come under moral pressure. To understand potential ramifications, we first describe three dominant philosophies of human-animal interactions (i.e., animal welfare, animal liberation, and animal rights). We contend that, as long as fishing and handling practices are as fish friendly as possible, most animal welfare perspectives can easily accommodate recreational fishing in its present form. In contrast, animal liberation and animal rights philosophies tend to reject recreational fishing. On the hypothesis that economic development is conducive to the emergence of pro-animal values in the wider public, it can be assumed that anti-angling sentiments resonating strongly with animal liberation/rights thinking might increase. Examples from opinion surveys covering a range of countries show that about 25% of people already morally question recreational fishing for sport. Coupled with the supposed shift in pro-animal values, this public sentimen...

Strategies for Communicating About Climate Change Impacts on Public Lands

Natural resource agencies in the United States have a huge responsibility to protect and manage public lands as well as effectively communicate with diverse publics about land management issues. One of these issues is how best to deal with the impacts of climate change on our nation’s treasured landscapes. Fortunately, a recent surge of research and theorizing in the social sciences on communication about climate change can inform natural resource communication efforts. What insights can scholars share with communication practitioners and public land managers? What communication principles will help them create effective strategies for communicating about climate change? How can scholars best communicate the complexity of climate change impacts and nuances of changes at landscape scales? To begin to address these questions, Colorado State University researchers, in partnership with the Office of the Governor of the State of Colorado, hosted a 3-day workshop on the challenges and opportunities associated with communicating about climate change on public lands in the western United States. This commentary summarizes ideas generated from workshop discussions, including 9 key messages and 10 key principles for effective climate change communication in a land management context.

Assessing demand for big-game hunting opportunities: applying the multiple-satisfaction concept

Abstract We used a multiple-satisfaction approach to assess demand for elk hunting opportunities in Colorado. We used a mail-out instrument and follow-up telephone interview to contact a random sample of resident and nonresident Colorado elk (Cervus elaphus) hunters (n = 1,618). The majority of elk hunters preferred rifle hunts that maximize hunting frequency but also coincide with higher hunter densities and smaller male elk. We also found that hunters preferred management alternatives that allow frequent hunts for moderate-sized animals over alternatives that focus on trophy hunting. Consistent with other studies employing the multiple satisfaction construct and with principles that guide experience-based management, we found that not all hunters seek the same type of hunting opportunity. This would suggest that within the constraints of cost, providing a range of hunting opportunities will result in a broader range of benefits to the hunting public. Data were used not only to indicate preference for different herd management alternatives but also to provide the basis for estimating total number of hunters afield in a given year and expected license-sale revenue across alternatives. Information we provided has aided the Colorado Division of Wildlife in updating its big-game-hunting regulatory process.

Understanding public perceptions of risk regarding outdoor pet cats to inform conservation action

Free-ranging domestic cats (Felis catus) incur and impose risks on ecosystems and represent a complex issue of critical importance to biodiversity conservation and cat and human health globally. Prior social science research on this topic is limited and has emphasized feral cats even though owned cats often comprise a large proportion of the outdoor cat population, particularly in urban areas. To address this gap, we examined public risk perceptions and attitudes toward outdoor pet cats across varying levels of urbanization, including along the wildland-urban interface, in Colorado (U.S.A.), through a mail survey of 1397 residents. Residents did not view all types of risks uniformly. They viewed risks of cat predation on wildlife and carnivore predation on cats as more likely than disease-related risks. Additionally, risk perceptions were related to attitudes, prior experiences with cats and cat-wildlife interactions, and cat-owner behavior. Our findings suggest that changes in risk perceptions may result in behavior change. Therefore, knowledge of cat-related risk perceptions and attitudes could be used to develop communication programs aimed at promoting risk-aversive behaviors among cat owners and cat-management strategies that are acceptable to the public and that directly advance the conservation of native species.