Emerging human dimensions research in coastal and nearshore Oceania

Abstract

Calls for incorporating human dimensions into marine conservation have increased and begun to coalesce as marine social science. However, it is unclear what types of research and foci have been centered in this new interdisciplinary field and what gaps remain. Seeking to clarify the state of marine social science's emerging discourses and methods, we conducted a systematic mapping review of human dimensions studies in coastal and nearshore Oceania published from 2016 to 2022. We reviewed 684 studies, most of which appeared in interdisciplinary marine science journals. We deductively coded studies using previously established human dimensions categories. Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Hawaiʻi, and Fiji were the focus of 65% of studies despite comprising only a fraction of the total region. Emerging themes of the study included Indigenous worldviews, complex and nuanced drivers of human behavior, diverse human–ocean relationships, and social equity and justice. Some of the studies notably complicated common assumptions about human behavior in marine domains. Over half of the studies used mixed methods, engaging multiple perspectives and allowing for a more comprehensive understanding of research domains that may set marine social science apart in its ability to incorporate understudied human dimensions into marine conservation. Participatory methods, although not yet common, provide a valuable suite of approaches to understanding issues of social equity in marine management and studies of sensory and affective dimensions, also uncommon, could be of high value in filling gaps in understanding of people's complex relationships with marine places. Expanding interdisciplinary training for the next generation of marine stewards and transdisciplinary collaborations will provide opportunities to further mainstream marine social science for a richer, more comprehensive, and just understanding of the world's peopled seas.