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On the overlap between scientific and societal taxonomic attentions — Insights for conservation

Jarić, Ivan, Correia, Ricardo A, Roberts, David L., Gessner, Jörn, Meinard, Yves, Courchamp, Franck (2019) On the overlap between scientific and societal taxonomic attentions — Insights for conservation. Science of the Total Environment, 648 . pp. 772-778. ISSN 0048-9697. E-ISSN 1879-1026. (doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.08.198) (KAR id:68842)

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.08.198

Abstract

Attention directed at different species by society and science is particularly relevant within the field of conservation, as societal preferences will strongly impact support for conservation initiatives and their success. Here, we assess the association between societal and research interests in four charismatic and threatened species groups, derived from a range of different online sources and social media platforms as well as scientific publications. We found a high level of concordance between scientific and societal taxonomic attention, which was consistent among assessed species groups and media sources. Results indicate that research is apparently not as disconnected from the interests of society as it is often reproached, and that societal support for current research objectives should be adequate. While the high degree of similarity between scientific and societal interest is both striking and satisfying, the dissimilarities are also interesting, as new scientific findings may constitute a constant source of novel interest for the society. In that respect, additional efforts will be necessary to draw scientific and societal focus towards less charismatic species that are in urgent need of research and conservation attention.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.08.198
Uncontrolled keywords: Societal attention; Charisma; Birds of prey; Primates; Carnivora; Marine mammals
Subjects: Q Science > QH Natural history > QH75 Conservation (Biology)
Q Science > QL Zoology
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation
Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation > DICE (Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology)
Depositing User: David Roberts
Date Deposited: 28 Aug 2018 20:52 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Feb 2021 13:57 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/68842 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)
Roberts, David L.: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6788-2691
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