Context The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was mandated by legislation to develop manag... more Context The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was mandated by legislation to develop management plans for American Black Bears and needed Illinois residents’ preferences for bear management strategies. Aims The aim of this article was to examine how demographics, emotions and attitudes were related to support for three American black bear management strategies (active reintroduction, natural recolonisation, having breeding populations of black bears). Researchers have repeatedly suggested that these predictors are related to support for management actions. Methods Data were obtained from a mail survey sent to two populations of stakeholder groups. A total of 896 agricultural producers completed the questionnaire (response rate = 36%); 904 hunters completed the questionnaire (response rate = 36%). Five demographic variables were used in the analyses: (1) agricultural producer; (2) hunter; (3) age; (4) sex; and (5) residence growing up. Positive and negative emotional dispositi...
Conservation psychology has a history of measuring variables that cannot be seen (e.g., values, a... more Conservation psychology has a history of measuring variables that cannot be seen (e.g., values, attitudes, norms). Such latent variables are critical drivers of human action and are often measured using responses to survey questions. Tools for establishing the psychometric adequacy of unobservable, latent variables has been a century‐long pursuit and challenge for quantitative psychologists and statisticians. Fundamental questions at the heart of this challenge include is what is claimed to be measured (validity) being measured and is measurement consistent (reliability)? We examined common methods used to establish the validity and reliability of psychometric instruments. Through a case study of anglers in Texas, we investigated the protocols and metrics used to evaluate the measurement of latent variables. The indicators we tested (identity, awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility, and personal norms) validly and reliably assessed latent variables. Our findings als...
This article examined visitors’ attitudes toward electric motorized bikes (ebikes) on natural sur... more This article examined visitors’ attitudes toward electric motorized bikes (ebikes) on natural surface trails and the reasons for support or opposition to ebikes. On-site survey data (n = 536) were obtained from visitors to Devil’s Backbone Open Space (DBOS) in Larimer County, Colorado in 2020. Findings suggested that visitors’ ebike attitudes differed by demographics (i.e., age, gender, residence), and trip characteristics (i.e., survey location, visits per year, primary activity). We also observed a positive correlation between perceived ebike familiarity and support. A content analysis of responses to an open-ended question revealed that concerns over safety, crowding, and beliefs that ebikes do not belong in natural environment were major reasons for opposing ebikes. The potential to expand trail access to people with mobility difficulties was the main reason for a supportive attitude. Visitors’ attitudes were also based on misperceptions about ebikes (e.g., ebikes are noisy), su...
In Europe an increasing number of scholars from different disciplines show growing interest in st... more In Europe an increasing number of scholars from different disciplines show growing interest in studying interactions between society and wildlife. Europe’s diversity with regard to cultures, languages and governance systems for wildlife is reflected in the wealth of research perspectives on human-wildlife interactions. Today a variety of approaches, disciplinary perspectives, theoretical frameworks, concepts and methods are used. However there is no common umbrella of “human dimensions of wildlife” similar to the one seen in North America.A network meeting was held with the goal to describe the current state of research in this field and to draft an outline for a future European research agenda. Sixty-three delegates from 25 European countries contributed due to workshop discussions and a follow-up online survey.Two major paths to the study of human-wildlife interactions were identified. One targets individuals or groups within society and is based on the theories of cognitive hiera...
Abstract Coastal dunes are sensitive to human pressure, even at low use levels. With the increase... more Abstract Coastal dunes are sensitive to human pressure, even at low use levels. With the increase of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use on dunes and the impacts associated with trampling dune vegetation, ATVs have become a primary concern for land managers charged with coastal protection. To better understand the situation, this article examined the relationships among ATV users’: (a) general value orientations (i.e., mutualism and domination, (b) norms (i.e., Awareness of Consequences, AC, and Ascription of Responsibility, AR), and (c) perceived impacts on coastal sand dunes. The two norms constructs were predicted to mediate the relationship between general value orientations and perceived impacts. Data were obtained from a systematic random sample of ATV users in the three communities in rural Canada (n = 97). Results indicated that mutualism was positively related to AC and AR and domination was negatively related to AC. Domination and AC were related to perceived impacts on coastal sand dunes. None of the other predicted relationships, however, were statistically significant.
The structural norm approach was combined with the Potential for Conflict Index to define recreat... more The structural norm approach was combined with the Potential for Conflict Index to define recreation streamflow needs for the Colorado River in Utah and Colorado. An online survey was completed by 128 commercial and non‐commercial boaters, who evaluated a range of flows for whitewater boating. For the Cataract Canyon reach, respondents rated the quality of their recreation experience of specific flows, describing the quality of boating opportunities across the full range of historical streamflows. Ranges for both acceptable and optimum flows were defined, as well as thresholds for unacceptable flows. These ranges were then evaluated against historical hydrologic records to quantify the timing, frequency, and duration of days when defined whitewater flows exist across different year types (i.e. average boatable days). Results indicated that on average, a total of 257 boatable days existed in dry years, and 353 total boatable days occurred in dry‐typical years. In wet and wet‐typical ...
Context The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was mandated by legislation to develop manag... more Context The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was mandated by legislation to develop management plans for American Black Bears and needed Illinois residents’ preferences for bear management strategies. Aims The aim of this article was to examine how demographics, emotions and attitudes were related to support for three American black bear management strategies (active reintroduction, natural recolonisation, having breeding populations of black bears). Researchers have repeatedly suggested that these predictors are related to support for management actions. Methods Data were obtained from a mail survey sent to two populations of stakeholder groups. A total of 896 agricultural producers completed the questionnaire (response rate = 36%); 904 hunters completed the questionnaire (response rate = 36%). Five demographic variables were used in the analyses: (1) agricultural producer; (2) hunter; (3) age; (4) sex; and (5) residence growing up. Positive and negative emotional dispositi...
Conservation psychology has a history of measuring variables that cannot be seen (e.g., values, a... more Conservation psychology has a history of measuring variables that cannot be seen (e.g., values, attitudes, norms). Such latent variables are critical drivers of human action and are often measured using responses to survey questions. Tools for establishing the psychometric adequacy of unobservable, latent variables has been a century‐long pursuit and challenge for quantitative psychologists and statisticians. Fundamental questions at the heart of this challenge include is what is claimed to be measured (validity) being measured and is measurement consistent (reliability)? We examined common methods used to establish the validity and reliability of psychometric instruments. Through a case study of anglers in Texas, we investigated the protocols and metrics used to evaluate the measurement of latent variables. The indicators we tested (identity, awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility, and personal norms) validly and reliably assessed latent variables. Our findings als...
This article examined visitors’ attitudes toward electric motorized bikes (ebikes) on natural sur... more This article examined visitors’ attitudes toward electric motorized bikes (ebikes) on natural surface trails and the reasons for support or opposition to ebikes. On-site survey data (n = 536) were obtained from visitors to Devil’s Backbone Open Space (DBOS) in Larimer County, Colorado in 2020. Findings suggested that visitors’ ebike attitudes differed by demographics (i.e., age, gender, residence), and trip characteristics (i.e., survey location, visits per year, primary activity). We also observed a positive correlation between perceived ebike familiarity and support. A content analysis of responses to an open-ended question revealed that concerns over safety, crowding, and beliefs that ebikes do not belong in natural environment were major reasons for opposing ebikes. The potential to expand trail access to people with mobility difficulties was the main reason for a supportive attitude. Visitors’ attitudes were also based on misperceptions about ebikes (e.g., ebikes are noisy), su...
In Europe an increasing number of scholars from different disciplines show growing interest in st... more In Europe an increasing number of scholars from different disciplines show growing interest in studying interactions between society and wildlife. Europe’s diversity with regard to cultures, languages and governance systems for wildlife is reflected in the wealth of research perspectives on human-wildlife interactions. Today a variety of approaches, disciplinary perspectives, theoretical frameworks, concepts and methods are used. However there is no common umbrella of “human dimensions of wildlife” similar to the one seen in North America.A network meeting was held with the goal to describe the current state of research in this field and to draft an outline for a future European research agenda. Sixty-three delegates from 25 European countries contributed due to workshop discussions and a follow-up online survey.Two major paths to the study of human-wildlife interactions were identified. One targets individuals or groups within society and is based on the theories of cognitive hiera...
Abstract Coastal dunes are sensitive to human pressure, even at low use levels. With the increase... more Abstract Coastal dunes are sensitive to human pressure, even at low use levels. With the increase of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use on dunes and the impacts associated with trampling dune vegetation, ATVs have become a primary concern for land managers charged with coastal protection. To better understand the situation, this article examined the relationships among ATV users’: (a) general value orientations (i.e., mutualism and domination, (b) norms (i.e., Awareness of Consequences, AC, and Ascription of Responsibility, AR), and (c) perceived impacts on coastal sand dunes. The two norms constructs were predicted to mediate the relationship between general value orientations and perceived impacts. Data were obtained from a systematic random sample of ATV users in the three communities in rural Canada (n = 97). Results indicated that mutualism was positively related to AC and AR and domination was negatively related to AC. Domination and AC were related to perceived impacts on coastal sand dunes. None of the other predicted relationships, however, were statistically significant.
The structural norm approach was combined with the Potential for Conflict Index to define recreat... more The structural norm approach was combined with the Potential for Conflict Index to define recreation streamflow needs for the Colorado River in Utah and Colorado. An online survey was completed by 128 commercial and non‐commercial boaters, who evaluated a range of flows for whitewater boating. For the Cataract Canyon reach, respondents rated the quality of their recreation experience of specific flows, describing the quality of boating opportunities across the full range of historical streamflows. Ranges for both acceptable and optimum flows were defined, as well as thresholds for unacceptable flows. These ranges were then evaluated against historical hydrologic records to quantify the timing, frequency, and duration of days when defined whitewater flows exist across different year types (i.e. average boatable days). Results indicated that on average, a total of 257 boatable days existed in dry years, and 353 total boatable days occurred in dry‐typical years. In wet and wet‐typical ...
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Papers by Jerry Vaske