Participation in the 'Aprovechamiento' Program and Turtle Protection Behaviors in the Buffer Zone of the La Flor Refuge Nicaragua. Exploratory Qualitative Study

摘要

This is a formative research report to present results from a study that explored selected turtle protection behaviors of residents in eight buffer zone communities of the La Flor Wildlife Refuge, located on Nicaragua's Pacific coast. Topics explored included: turtle protection behaviors that residents believed should be implemented and turtle protection behaviors which they had they actually performed; beliefs about what achievements are possible if the mentioned behaviors are performed (outcome beliefs) beliefs about social pressure that is exerted on individuals to perform these behaviors (normative beliefs). This study was part of an exercise to identify what turtle biologists inside and outside of Nicaragua, government officials within MARENA and community residents think about the behaviors that must be adopted to protect sea turtles. The hope was that there would be an overlap of the suggestions made by these different stakeholders. Any educational intervention to promote these behaviors would target communities in the La Flor buffer zone.