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Wildlife Value Orientations in Context: Using Experimental Design to Explain Acceptability of Lethal Removal and Risk Perceptions toward Wildlife

Allen, Katherine M, Allen
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1557234262868932

Abstract Details

2019, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Environment and Natural Resources.
Wildlife value orientations (WVOs) reflect sets of beliefs about preferred modes of treating wildlife and have been found to explain attitudes toward wildlife management interventions. Much research in the academic field of “human dimensions of wildlife" has examined the effects of WVOs on attitudes towards particular management actions, or a handful of particular species. Consequentially, past research has not isolated the effects of species attributes on attitudes. In the current work, I test whether the effects of WVOs on acceptability of lethal removal and risk perceptions about wildlife-related threats differ as a function of the following species attributes: endangered status, taxonomic order (i.e., Herbivora or Carnivora), and whether the species poses a threat. I distributed a self-administered online survey to a panel of 987 individuals using Prolific Academic to measure acceptability of lethal removal and risk perceptions of a species, WVOs (domination and mutualism), and experience with negative human-wildlife interactions in the past year. Moderated linear regression analyses revealed that the effects of the WVOs on acceptability of lethal removal and risk perceptions differed significantly between the experimental treatments. The results indicate that contextual cues about a species can dampen or strengthen the influence of WVOs when people make wildlife-related decisions. When explaining acceptability of lethal removal by a wildlife professional, domination increased acceptability of lethal removal to a greater extent when a species was described as posing a threat or was a carnivore, and to a lesser extent when a species was listed as endangered. When explaining risk perceptions, the relationships between WVOs and taxonomic order and threat treatments were more complex, as 3-way interactions were detected. However, the effects of WVOs on risk perceptions neither increased nor decreased as a function or whether a species was listed as endangered or not. Together, these findings provide a more detailed understanding of how WVOs influence judgments about wildlife-related actions in relation to different species attributes, which help explain why values matter more under some circumstances than others.
Alia Dietsch, PhD (Advisor)
Jeremy Bruskotter, PhD (Committee Member)
Robyn Wilson, PhD (Committee Member)
135 p.
Social Psychology; Wildlife Conservation; Wildlife Management
attitudes; human-wildlife interactions; wildlife; wildlife conservation; wildlife management; environmental social science; wildlife value orientations; experimental design

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Allen, Allen, K. M. (2019). Wildlife Value Orientations in Context: Using Experimental Design to Explain Acceptability of Lethal Removal and Risk Perceptions toward Wildlife [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1557234262868932

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Allen, Allen, Katherine . Wildlife Value Orientations in Context: Using Experimental Design to Explain Acceptability of Lethal Removal and Risk Perceptions toward Wildlife. 2019. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1557234262868932.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Allen, Allen, Katherine . "Wildlife Value Orientations in Context: Using Experimental Design to Explain Acceptability of Lethal Removal and Risk Perceptions toward Wildlife." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1557234262868932

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1557234262868932
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.