Social Science Methods for Marine Protected Areas

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Social Science for MPAs

Research Themes

Attitudes, Perceptions, and Beliefs

Submerged Cultural Resources

Governments, Institutions, and Processes

Case Studies

Case Studies

The following list contains a collection of case studies for which social science tools were used to address issues or answer questions related to Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and marine environments.

United States | Barbados | Fiji | Indonesia | Italy | Panama | Philippines

United States

	Willingness to Pay in Rocky Intertidal Ecosystems in Orange County, California Estimating how much visitors would be willing to pay to prevent further degradation to the rocky intertidal zone.

	Paying for Seagrass Restoration in the Florida Keys Using habitat equivalency analysis to determine the value of habitat lost.

	Combining Science and Technology in the Tortugas Ecological Reserve, Florida Using GIS to analyze socioeconomic data associated with the placement of a reserve.

	Identifying Communication Networks Among Fishermen in North Carolina Determining who are the most influential individuals within a community of king mackerel fishermen.

	Rapid Evaluation of Proposed Marine Conservation District in St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands Assessing the perceptions of user groups through content analysis and observation.

	The Importance of Communication in the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, Washington Improving compliance through observation and communication.

Barbados

	Involving the Community in Decision Making in Folkestone Marine Reserve, Barbados Identifying stakeholders and providing them with a forum to voice their views and opinions.

Fiji

	Using Ethnography to Document Traditional Practices in Kadavu, Fiji Understanding the history and culture of Fijians and integrating these into current MPA management.

Indonesia

	Analyzing the Costs and Benefits of Human Activities for Indonesian Coral Reefs Using cost-benefit analysis and predictive modeling to show others the need to protect coral reefs.

Italy

	MPA Perceptions by Small-Scale Fishermen in Sicily, Italy Using questionnaires to assess the perceptions of small-scale fishermen toward marine reserves.

Panama

	Identifying and Understanding Users in Coiba National Park, Panama Conducting a survey to identify fishermen's behaviors and practices.

Philippines

	Entrance Fees for Marine Sanctuaries in the Philippines Determining how many tourists are willing to pay to dive in areas where fishing is prohibited.