Science Exchange in an Era of Diminished Capacity: Recreation Management in the U.S. Forest Service

Abstract

Promotion of effective science exchange between government scientists and managers requires thoughtful arrangement and operation of research and management functions. The U.S. Forest Service was established at the peak of the Progressive Era, when science exchange was designed to occur between researchers and resource managers who worked in distinct arms of the agency, but shared similar goals of effective forest management. In this article, the authors explore the implications of diminished agency capacity for science exchange interactions between researchers and managers in recreation management. Managers and researchers identified their current interactions, their perceptions of ideal interactions, and barriers to achieving those ideals. Reductions in agency capacity for recreation management have resulted in the erosion of interactions between managers and researchers. However, effective science exchange does occur, but requires innovative and adaptive approaches.

Toward effective science delivery among recreation personnel

“…The questionnaire content was based on previous research (Hohl, 2007;Nelson, 2006;Ryan & Cerveny, 2010) and USFS information needs; given the descriptive nature of the information needs, a questionnaire was deemed an appropriate research vehicle to use. An online questionnaire was appropriate to reach the dispersed sample as they had e-mail access.…”

“…The main constraints to information use among managers include lack of resources (Ryan & Cerveny, 2010 and time (Mills, Smythe, & Diaz-Soltero, 2002; Downloaded by [University of Exeter] at 02:18 19 June 2016 Nelson, 2006;Wright, 2009). Time constraints can take at least two aspects: (a) an insufficient number of hours to get the job done (Nelson, 2006;Wright, 2009) and (b) an organizational constraint when researchers and recreation personnel define schedules and deadlines differently (Mills et al, 2002).…”

“…Constraints to research use also include a lack of manager awareness about available research (Ryan & Cerveny, 2010;Singh, 2010;Wright, 2009) and its accessibility (Nelson, 2006;Ryan & Cerveny, 2011;Schneider, Anderson, & Jakes, 1993). If recreation personnel want to adopt science in their operations, it is crucial that they know where to find information.…”

“…Cultural differences include, but are not limited to, expectations about schedules and deadlines (Ryan & Cerveny, 2010), evaluation structure (Dumroese, 2012), and relevance (Nelson, 2006;Warrington, 2007). While diverse perspectives generally benefit most planning and decision-making processes, constraints may also arise from differences.…”

Understanding Knowledge Exchange in Practice: Empirically Derived Insights for Engaging in Effective Knowledge Exchange for Environmental Management

“…Opportunities to engage in informal communication are important because oral and experiential forms of knowledge are often developed and communicated by engaging in hands-on practices or through in-person observations and interactions (Nguyen et al, 2021). In a case study produced by Ryan and Cerveny (2010), the ability for knowledge producers to communicate research findings to managers (knowledge users) at the US Forest Service through face-to-face interactions and hands-on technical demonstrations was critical for managers to interpret the highly complex knowledge accurately.…”