Use of theories of human action in recent conservation research

IF 5.2 1区 环境科学与生态学 Q1 BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
Harold N. Eyster, Rachelle K. Gould, Kai M. A. Chan, Terre Satterfield
{"title":"Use of theories of human action in recent conservation research","authors":"Harold N. Eyster,&nbsp;Rachelle K. Gould,&nbsp;Kai M. A. Chan,&nbsp;Terre Satterfield","doi":"10.1111/cobi.14461","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Social sciences are increasingly recognized as useful for reorienting human action toward environmental conservation. Fully realizing the social sciences’ potential requires applying social science methods to conservation challenges and drawing from and building on human action theories from across the social sciences to better understand how and when actions can realize positive social and environmental priorities. We conducted an in-depth analysis of a bounded, systematically selected set of conservation science peer-reviewed articles to investigate the prevalence of social science theories of human action in conservation research and whether these theories represent the richness of the social science literature related to human action. We censused papers published in 2023 in <i>Conservation Biology</i>, <i>Conservation Letters</i>, and <i>Biological Conservation</i> and assessed each paper's geographic scope, social science engagement, whether it investigated human action, and weather it explicitly used human action theories and underlying metatheory (i.e., ways of understanding the world and how one gains knowledge of it). Results across 533 papers showed that 32% of papers incorporated social science and that 64% of these social science papers investigated human action. Twenty-seven percent of these human action papers used explicit human action theories. The theory of planned behavior was the most used explicit theory (17% of action theory papers). The independent self metatheory was the most prevalent; it underlies the theory of planned behavior and focuses on understanding how personal attributes, such as values, shape intentional individual behavior. The prevalence of a few theories and metatheories in these dominant conservation journals may indicate a limited capacity for conservation research to build on previous research, avoid redundant reinvention, and unmask novel applications of social science theory that could reorient human action toward conservation. Human action theory use in conservation might be broadened by changing attitudes on the importance of human action theories for research; incorporating social theory in conservation education; asking reviewers to comment on theory usage and mandating theory reporting; creating spaces for social scientists and theory scholars; providing social scientists and theorists with decision-making power in organizations; rewarding theory use; recognizing feedback loops among theory use; and replacing colonial and capitalistic approaches to conservation.</p>","PeriodicalId":10689,"journal":{"name":"Conservation Biology","volume":"39 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cobi.14461","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Conservation Biology","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.14461","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0

Abstract

Social sciences are increasingly recognized as useful for reorienting human action toward environmental conservation. Fully realizing the social sciences’ potential requires applying social science methods to conservation challenges and drawing from and building on human action theories from across the social sciences to better understand how and when actions can realize positive social and environmental priorities. We conducted an in-depth analysis of a bounded, systematically selected set of conservation science peer-reviewed articles to investigate the prevalence of social science theories of human action in conservation research and whether these theories represent the richness of the social science literature related to human action. We censused papers published in 2023 in Conservation Biology, Conservation Letters, and Biological Conservation and assessed each paper's geographic scope, social science engagement, whether it investigated human action, and weather it explicitly used human action theories and underlying metatheory (i.e., ways of understanding the world and how one gains knowledge of it). Results across 533 papers showed that 32% of papers incorporated social science and that 64% of these social science papers investigated human action. Twenty-seven percent of these human action papers used explicit human action theories. The theory of planned behavior was the most used explicit theory (17% of action theory papers). The independent self metatheory was the most prevalent; it underlies the theory of planned behavior and focuses on understanding how personal attributes, such as values, shape intentional individual behavior. The prevalence of a few theories and metatheories in these dominant conservation journals may indicate a limited capacity for conservation research to build on previous research, avoid redundant reinvention, and unmask novel applications of social science theory that could reorient human action toward conservation. Human action theory use in conservation might be broadened by changing attitudes on the importance of human action theories for research; incorporating social theory in conservation education; asking reviewers to comment on theory usage and mandating theory reporting; creating spaces for social scientists and theory scholars; providing social scientists and theorists with decision-making power in organizations; rewarding theory use; recognizing feedback loops among theory use; and replacing colonial and capitalistic approaches to conservation.

Abstract Image

人类行为理论在最近环境保护研究中的应用
人们日益认识到,社会科学有助于将人类行动的方向转向环境保护。充分发挥社会科学的潜力需要将社会科学方法应用于保护挑战,并借鉴和建立社会科学领域的人类行动理论,以更好地理解行动如何以及何时能够实现积极的社会和环境优先事项。我们对一组有限的、系统选择的保护科学同行评审文章进行了深入分析,以调查人类行为的社会科学理论在保护研究中的流行程度,以及这些理论是否代表了与人类行为相关的社会科学文献的丰富性。我们对2023年发表在《保护生物学》、《保护快报》和《生物保护》上的论文进行了统计,并评估了每篇论文的地理范围、社会科学参与度、是否研究了人类行为,以及是否明确使用了人类行为理论和潜在的元理论(即理解世界的方式以及人们如何获得知识)。533篇论文的结果显示,32%的论文包含了社会科学,其中64%的社会科学论文调查了人类行为。这些人类行为论文中有27%使用了明确的人类行为理论。计划行为理论是使用最多的显性理论(占行动理论论文的17%)。独立自我元理论最为盛行;它是计划行为理论的基础,并侧重于理解个人属性(如价值观)如何塑造有意的个人行为。一些理论和元理论在这些主要的保护期刊上的流行可能表明保护研究的能力有限,无法建立在以前的研究基础上,避免冗余的重新发明,并揭示社会科学理论的新应用,这些应用可以重新定位人类的保护行为。通过改变对人类行为理论在研究中的重要性的态度,可以扩大人类行为理论在保护中的应用;将社会理论纳入保育教育;要求审稿人对理论运用进行评议,并要求进行理论报告;为社会科学家和理论学者创造空间;为社会科学家和理论家提供组织中的决策权;奖励理论运用;认识理论运用中的反馈回路;取代殖民主义和资本主义的保护方法。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
求助全文
约1分钟内获得全文 求助全文
来源期刊
Conservation Biology
Conservation Biology 环境科学-环境科学
CiteScore
12.70
自引率
3.20%
发文量
175
审稿时长
2 months
期刊介绍: Conservation Biology welcomes submissions that address the science and practice of conserving Earth's biological diversity. We encourage submissions that emphasize issues germane to any of Earth''s ecosystems or geographic regions and that apply diverse approaches to analyses and problem solving. Nevertheless, manuscripts with relevance to conservation that transcend the particular ecosystem, species, or situation described will be prioritized for publication.
×
引用
GB/T 7714-2015
复制
MLA
复制
APA
复制
导出至
BibTeX EndNote RefMan NoteFirst NoteExpress
×
提示
您的信息不完整,为了账户安全,请先补充。
现在去补充
×
提示
您因"违规操作"
具体请查看互助需知
我知道了
×
提示
确定
请完成安全验证×
copy
已复制链接
快去分享给好友吧!
我知道了
右上角分享
点击右上角分享
0
联系我们:info@booksci.cn Book学术提供免费学术资源搜索服务,方便国内外学者检索中英文文献。致力于提供最便捷和优质的服务体验。 Copyright © 2023 布克学术 All rights reserved.
京ICP备2023020795号-1
ghs 京公网安备 11010802042870号
Book学术文献互助
Book学术文献互助群
群 号:481959085
Book学术官方微信