Qualitative and Quantitative Fisher Perceptions to Complement Natural Science Data for Managing Fisheries

Abstract

Sustainably managing fisheries for ecological and social objectives in the current era of rapid environmental change requires that managers, scientists, and fishery stakeholders work together to find solutions to complex problems. Recognizing that multiple forms of knowledge generation exist and focusing on the strengths of different ways-of-knowing can facilitate a more holistic understanding of these problems. Here, we illustrate the value in both natural and social science-generated information for informing our understanding of a rapidly changing social-ecological system. Using data collected through an in-person and online survey, we show that methods for quantifying user perceptions can facilitate the integration of social data with traditional scientific data collection efforts. Specifically, the synthesis of a Bayesian lifecycle model (Cunningham et al. 2018) for Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and quantified fisher perceptions suggests that natural science efforts and resource users largely agree on many of the factors that may be contributing to the observed declines in abundance of Chinook Salmon in Alaska. A qualitative assessment of the perceptions of resource users revealed benefits to incorporating stakeholders in science and management, including the ability to identify regional issues or trends potentially unrealized by natural science approaches. Our study highlights the synergistic value of multiple sources of ecological information for sustainably managing fishery systems.

New directions for Indigenous and local knowledge research and application in fisheries science: Lessons from a systematic review

“…Murphy Jr. et al. (2021) compared fishers' perceptions of factors that contribute to population decline with a Bayesian lifecycle model, while others compared ecosystem models created using ILK with those based on scientific data (Bevilacqua et al., 2016), or focused on comparing fisher perceptions of catch or abundance trends with landing data and stock assessments (Damasio et al., 2015; Duplisea, 2018; Thurstan et al., 2016). Articles within this category produced a mix of primarily qualitative (61%), secondarily semi‐quantitative (27%) and a small number of quantitative analyses (12%).…”

New directions for Indigenous and Local Knowledge research and application in fisheries science: Lessons from a Systematic Review

“…While many of these ar-cles also documented and reported similar informa-on as those in the understanding category, the key difference was that they specifically aimed to compare or test ILK with standard scien-fic knowledge. Murphy Jr. et al (2021) compared fishers' percep-ons of factors that contribute to popula-on decline with a Bayesian lifecycle model, while others compared ecosystem models created using ILK with those based on scien-fic data (e.g., Bevilacqua et al, 2016), or focused on comparing fisher percep-ons of catch or abundance trends with landing data and stock assessments (e.g., Damasio et al, 2015;Duplisea, 2018;Thurstan et al, 2016). Ar-cles within this category produced a mix of primarily qualita-ve (61%), secondarily semi-quan-ta-ve (27%), and a small number of quan-ta-ve analyses (12%).…”

Consumer perceptions of stingrays in coastal areas of Indonesia

“…Sustainable fisheries management for natural and social purposes in today's age of rapid ecological change requires fisheries chiefs, researchers, and partners to cooperate to track down answers for complex issues (Murphy et al 2021). Planning methodologies that empower utilization must be socially reliable and the sustainability of this technique will depend on determining the factors that influence how to behave socially (Palacios-González and Chamorro-Mera 2021) and to increase consumer eagerness to switch to reasonable food utilization, so that suitable administrative and observing systems are expected to increment consumer trust in supportable food (Chu et al 2023).…”