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Author(s):
Katie Kneeshaw, Jerry J. Vaske, Alan D. Bright, James D. Absher
Year Published:

Cataloging Information

Topic(s):
Fire Communication & Education
Public Perspectives of Fire Management
Management Approaches

NRFSN number: 21726
Record updated:

Norm theory offers a paradigm for understanding why the public judges management actions acceptable or unacceptable. This study assesses normative beliefs about acceptable wildland fire management. The acceptability of three fire management actions for eight scenarios was examined. The scenarios varied by fire origin and fire impact on air quality, private property, forest recovery, and outdoor recreation. The data were obtained from a mail survey of visitors to three national forests: (a) Arapaho-Roosevelt, Colorado (n = 469), (b) Mt. Baker–Snoqualmie,Washington (n = 498), and (b) San Bernardino, California (n = 321). Results of a mixed design ANOVA indicated that the acceptability of wildland fire management actions but did not reveal substantive differences in normative agreement between forests.

Citation

Kneeshaw K, Vaske JJ, Bright AD, and Absher JD. 2004. Acceptability norms toward fire management in three national forests. Environment and Behavior 36 (4): 592-612. DOI: 10.1177/0013916503259510

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