Who Complains About Alligators? Cognitive and Situational Factors Influence Behavior Toward Wildlife

Abstract

Understanding perceptual and situational factors underlying nuisance complaints can help managers maintain carnivore populations while mitigating conflicts with people. Our study uses data from a mail survey (n = 467 complainants about nuisance alligators, and n = 669 random Florida residents) and a three-step binary logistic regression analysis to examine how general attitudes, specific beliefs, and situational factors influence the behavior of reporting nuisance alligators. Residence adjacent to fresh water, the presence of outdoor pets, higher risk belief scores, higher nuisance belief scores, higher education, and older age were all related to complaining about an alligator, whereas general attitude toward alligators was not. Results are consistent with the “specificity principle” for attitude–behavior correspondence and emphasize the importance of situational factors as behavioral determinants. Targeted harvest areas can help to manage complaints in marginal habitats where risk from alligators is persistent. Information about protective behaviors and benefits of alligators can motivate residents to avoid dangerous encounters.

Keywords:

• behaviors
• carnivores
• attitudes
• risk
• specificity

Notes

1. The statewide random sample of Florida households was divided evenly between urban and rural addresses because we initially aimed to evaluate differences between urban and rural residents, and wanted to ensure adequate sample sizes of both groups. Analysis of the data, however, revealed no difference between urban and rural respondents on variables of interest: attitude, t(696) = .33, p = .741, r_pb = .01; risk beliefs, t(689) = 1.88, p = .061, r_pb = .07; and nuisance beliefs, t(681) = 1.29, p = .197, r_pb = .05.