There is a pressing need to integrate biophysical and human dimensions science to better inform holistic ecosystem management supporting the transition from single species or single-sector management to multi-sector ecosystem-based management. Ecosystem-based management should focus upon ecosystem services, since they reflect societal goals, values, desires, and benefits. The inclusion of ecosystem services into holistic management strategies improves management by better capturing the diversity of positive and negative human-natural interactions and making explicit the benefits to society. To facilitate this inclusion, we propose a conceptual model that merges the broadly applied Driver, Pressure, State, Impact, and Response (DPSIR) conceptual model with ecosystem services yielding a Driver, Pressure, State, Ecosystem service, and Response (EBM-DPSER) conceptual model. The impact module in traditional DPSIR models focuses attention upon negative anthropomorphic impacts on the ecosystem; by replacing impacts with ecosystem services the EBM-DPSER model incorporates not only negative, but also positive changes in the ecosystem. Responses occur as a result of changes in ecosystem services and include inter alia management actions directed at proactively altering human population or individual behavior and infrastructure to meet societal goals. The EBM-DPSER conceptual model was applied to the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas marine ecosystem as a case study to illustrate how it can inform management decisions. This case study captures our system-level understanding and results in a more holistic representation of ecosystem and human society interactions, thus improving our ability to identify trade-offs. The EBM-DPSER model should be a useful operational tool for implementing EBM, in that it fully integrates our knowledge of all ecosystem components while focusing management attention upon those aspects of the ecosystem most important to human society and does so within a framework already familiar to resource managers.
Recreation specialization can be viewed as a continuum of behavior from the general to the particular. Along this continuum, participants can be located into meaningful subgroups based on specific criteria. Previous studies have defined, measured, and segmented specialization groups in a variety of ways. The research reported here builds on the Ditton, Loomis, and Choi reconceptualization of recreation specialization. A specialization index was developed to segment anglers into four groups based on their orientation, experiences, relationships, and commitment. Internal validation analysis supported the use of this specialization index as a tool for angler segmentation. Subsequent hypotheses tested for differences among specialization groups in frequency of participation, importance of activity and nonactivity-specific elements, support for management regulations, and sidebets. Results provide strong support for the conceptual framework developed by Ditton et al. These findings indicate a multidimensional index can be used to segment anglers into discreet, meaningful specialization categories.
This study explored relationships between specialization and anglers' attitudes and beliefs connected to marine protected areas (MPAs). A mail survey questionnaire was sent to 697 private boat saltwater anglers in five northeastern states (62% response, n = 419). Although recreation specialization theory predicts that more specialized participants will indicate greater support for management regulations than will less specialized participants, the authors found no significant difference in attitude toward MPAs across specialization level. Highly specialized anglers were more likely to believe that recreational harvest has a detrimental impact on fish populations than were less specialized anglers. However, the loss of access to specific fishery resources will likely be more consequential for highly specialized (more resource dependent) anglers. This greater resource dependency may have counterbalanced their general tendency to show more support for regulations as compared to less specialized anglers. Incorporation of specialization theory into attitude research can improve the understanding of important cognitive differences that exist among diverse recreation participants. Implications for specialization theory and natural resource management are discussed.
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