Ethnicity and variations in wildlife concern: exploring the socio-structural and socio- psychological bases of wildlife values

Vinod Sasidharan and Brijesh Thapa the purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model to examine the socio-structural and socio-psychological construct of wildlife concern within ethnic populations, by employing environmental concern paradigms. In this paper, wildlife concern will be operationalized as wildlife relevant behavior influenced by environmental (including wildlife) attitude variables within the broader socio-cultural context (Stern et al.1995). The literature on environmentalism that has accumulated over the last two decades can be divided into two major streams: 1) studies focused on sociodemographic factors associated with environmentalism and 2) studies of values, beliefs and other social psychological constructs related to environmentalism (Dietz et al. 1998). Review of the literature reveals a paucity of research about the links between social psychological correlates of environmentalism and wildlife concern to sociodemographic variables (Dietz et al. 1998), including ethnicity. Such research might demonstrate how environmental attitudes and wildlife concern are shaped by social context (in this case, ethnicity) and reveal some of the mechanisms by which sociodemographic variables influence environmentally responsible behavior and wildlife concern. The question to be asked is, " What accounts for racial and ethnic variations in environmental and wildlife concern? " In an attempt to answer this question, this paper will employ a modified version of the framework outlined by Stern, Dietz & Guagnano (1995). The proposed framework brings together the five relevant factors collectively identified in the " New Ecological Paradigm Scale, " " Norm Activation Model, " and the " NEP in social-psychological context " : social structure and socialization; value orientations-biospheric-altruistic values, egoistic values, openness to change, traditional values; general worldview and ideology; specific attitudes and beliefs (includes general awareness of consequences); and behavioral indicators. The conceptual model developed through this paper may be utilized by wildlife planners, managers and developers, in urban areas with growing ethnic populations, as a tool for integrating the socio-structural and socio-psychological constructs of wildlife concern (among ethnic communities) within their resource policies and decisions.