Assessing the Impact of Decision Frame and Existing Attitudes on Support for Wolf Restoration in the United States

Abstract

This article examines (a) the effect of previous restoration success and communication vividness on support for future wolf restoration efforts, (b) differentiates between the effect of these constructs and pre-existing attitudes, and (c) provides insight into improving communications about high-profile species restoration. Data were obtained from an online experiment conducted with U.S. residents in 2008. Attitudes toward protecting endangered species influenced participants' attitudes toward wolf restoration, associated voting preferences, and the amount they were willing to donate to future efforts. Priming subjects with information about past failed efforts resulted in a more negative attitude toward wolf restoration compared to those primed with information about successful efforts. This effect, however, did not extend to voting or donating preferences. These results suggest that both existing attitudes and the adopted decision frame contribute to how specific wolf restoration attitudes are formed and changed.

Keywords:

• decision frame
• loss aversion
• attitudes
• policy preferences
• gray wolves