Words matter and how we name things can have a particularly large influence on how others perceive them. Previous research has demonstrated that animal common names can influence willingness to conserve species (Karaffa et al. 2012), and may even impact their conservation support and threat status. We use experimental surveys to test the influence of five different “common name frames” on perceived conservation importance, willingness to donate, and willingness to volunteer. We also test whether these responses are mediated by information seeking and processing variables in the audience – problem recognition, constraint recognition, level of involvement – to disentangle how each name change influences perceptions and intended behaviour. This work could inform strategic name changes of species common names to improve perceptions, support and ultimately conservation success.

 

Presenter

Emily Gregg, PhD Candidate, RMIT University

 

When: Monday 17th February, 2:00-3:30
Where: Room G03, Learning and Teaching Building, 19 Ancora Imparo Way, Clayton
Hashtag: TBC