Browsing by Author "Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor"
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Item Open Access Comparing the social psychological drivers of personal sphere, social diffusion, and civic action behaviors for native plant gardening(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Tamlyn, Kaiya, author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Teel, Tara, committee member; Abrams, Katie, committee memberProtecting biodiversity and conserving water, especially in urban environments, are crucial facets of conservation efforts that can be supported by gardening with native plant species. However, native plant gardening at the individual or personal sphere level is not enough. There is also a need for citizens to participate in behaviors outside of the personal sphere, such as social diffusion and civic action, to influence the networks and social systems in which they are embedded to achieve more rapid, large-scale environmental change. Little is known, however, about whether the social-psychological drivers of behaviors outside of the personal sphere are distinct from the drivers of personal sphere action. To address this, we examined the factors influencing personal sphere, social diffusion, and civic action behaviors in the context of native plant gardening in the United States. Through a nationwide survey conducted in February 2023 (n = 1,201), we found that, while there was some overlap, each behavior type was motivated by distinct, often behavior-specific, variables. Personal sphere-specific self-efficacy and age predicted personal sphere behavior; social diffusion-specific dynamic norms (perceptions that the behavior of others is changing) and moral exporting (an individual's inclination to encourage others to embrace their moral position) predicted social diffusion behavior; introversion predicted civic action behavior; and behavior-specific personal norms predicted all three behavior types. We also examined the prevalence of each type of behavior and found that personal sphere behaviors are the most commonly practiced, followed by social diffusion behaviors and then civic action behaviors. Our findings suggest that to motivate social diffusion and civic action behaviors, practitioners may have to design outreach interventions that target the unique social-psychological drivers of these behaviors.Item Open Access Group-level social influences for carnivore restoration and management(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Gonzalez, Mireille N., author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Crooks, Kevin, committee member; Teel, Tara, committee member; Quartuch, Mike, committee member; Jacobson, Cynthia, committee memberIn this dissertation, I conducted research on how perceptions of the group level of the social system influence individuals' perspectives and behaviors related to carnivore restoration and management (CRM) in the U.S. American West. Using the case study of gray wolf (Canis lupus) reintroduction in Colorado, I explored three aspects of the group level of the social system. After nearly 80 years since their extirpation, environmental organizations advocating for wolf recovery introduced a ballot initiative (Proposition 114) that mandates Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the state wildlife agency, reintroduce wolves into Colorado by December 31st, 2023. In November 2020 Proposition 114 passed with about 51% of the votes (Colorado Election Results, 2020), marking the first ever U.S. reintroduction of an endangered species via a ballot initiative. In my first chapter, I used public survey data to explore how intragroup perceptions, or how perceptions of a group one identifies as belonging to, influenced individual and collective civic actions related to wolf reintroduction. I found that social norms influenced intended voting for Proposition 114 and plans for those individuals that opposed reintroduction to engage in collective action against reintroduction. In my second chapter, I used stakeholder interview data to examine perspectives of what would make a stakeholder engagement process, that brings together conflicting stakeholders to collaboratively build recommendations for wolf restoration and management, successful. Stakeholders expected that the process should be representative, transparent, and actively inclusive and that it should foster two-way dialogue. Additionally, to be considered successful, they believed it should achieve the social outcomes of conflict reduction, social learning, increased trust in agency, and increased support for the management plan. Lastly, in my third chapter, I used stakeholder interview data to examine how perspectives of the outgroup, or a group one does not identify as belonging to, influence social conflict about wolf reintroduction. I found that conflict was fueled by perceptions that the outgroup is unjust, misinformed, homogenous, and unmalleable. Overall, my dissertation expands our collective understanding of the multi-scalar influencers to human behavior that affect carnivore restoration and management. Based on these findings, I recommend how to develop interventions and stakeholder engagement that can help achieve desired social outcomes related to CRM objectives.Item Open Access Message frames and wildlife values influence public acceptance of wild horse management strategies(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2020) Rodriguez, Jeffrey, author; Bright, Alan, advisor; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; King, Sarah, committee memberWild horses are a symbol of the American West that evoke emotional responses from people, and the management of these populations has become a contentious issue. We examined the influence of messaging and wildlife value orientations on public acceptance of potential wild horse management actions in the Western United States. We used an online questionnaire that began with one of three randomly assigned messages about wild horse management: the control message provided information about wild horse populations and management options, the rational appeal added on information about the negative impacts of growing wild horse populations and the limitations of current management approaches, and the emotional appeal added a photograph of emaciated wild horses to the rational appeal. The questionnaire then asked participants about their acceptance of wild horse management options and their values of and experiences with domestic horses. Our survey experiment showed that messaging can influence overall acceptance of wild horse management techniques. Participants who received the emotional or rational appeal were more accepting of the use of contraception, sterilization, euthanasia, and the sale of horses to be used for consumption compared to those who received the control. Adding an emotional component to the rational appeal increased acceptance of wild horses living out their lives in government holding pens over all other message conditions. We also found that participants in general were more accepting of contraception and sterilization than any of the other management techniques. Participants with traditionalist values were more likely to accept euthanasia. Overall, we suggest that messaging may influence public acceptance of many of the proposed management actions for wild horses in the Western United States.Item Open Access Social-psychological factors influencing community engagement in urban biodiversity conservation(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Champine, Veronica Murielle, author; Niemiec, Rebecca, advisor; Balgopal, Meena, committee member; Bruyere, Brett, committee member; Jones, Megan, committee member; Solomon, Jennifer, committee memberAs the human population grows and we continue to see rapid biodiversity loss, conserving natural resources in urbanized areas has become increasingly important. Motivating people to engage in pro-environmental behavior is one of the many strategies to address biodiversity. Strategic human action can help shape social norms and generate social movements that influence the social systems that intensify environmental degradation. This dissertation builds on the existing pro-environmental behavior literature and explores the motivators and barriers to different types of urban biodiversity conservation actions. These include personal-sphere behavior (i.e., participating in an action by oneself), social diffusion behavior (i.e., actions that disseminate information or behavior via social networks), and civic action behavior (i.e., citizenship actions to address a collective issue). In three articles, I use cross-sectional, experimental, and audience segmentation methods to compare the drivers of distinct behaviors, evaluate the impacts of theory-based outreach strategies, and identify target audiences for biodiversity conservation behaviors related to native plant gardening in the United States. Findings from this research can inform outreach strategies that promote greater community engagement in urban biodiversity conservation to support native wildlife and human wellbeing in urbanized areas.