12.D.5 Social literature review

This project reviews the research literature on public attitudes towards, and understanding of, invasive animals and their impacts. The published review Public attitudes towards invasive animals and their impacts (see 'Documents') will improve understanding among CRC participants, decision makers and the public of social attitudes towards invasive animals.

Animals covered in the Australasian literature include: foxes, wild dogs, rodents, cane toads, rabbits, horses, pigs, deer, goats, kangaroos, possums, stoats, bandicoots and flying foxes. The review observed that little primary research has been done on attitudes and perceptions of invasive animals in Australia. Studies to date have generally been reactive and not well informed by previous work. The geographical coverage is patchy, and no national Australian picture for pest animals is available. The species coverage is variable, as is the quality of the work, with almost no coverage of perceived or experienced social impacts.

Perceptions and attitudes to invasive animals were found to vary with:

• Gender - males are generally more likely to consider invasive animals a serious problem, and more likely to support intervention and the use of lethal controls
• Age - older people are generally more likely to regard an animal as a pest (and a more serious problem) than younger people are
• Residence - rural residents generally perceive invasive animals as being more of a problem than urban residents do
• Species -  invasive animal animals that are capable of being companion animals or are large, attractive mammals, are generally considered more favourably than rodents and non-mammalian species
• Personal situation - attitudes towards species that are seen as a pressing national or local problem tend to be more negative than towards species that are seen as being less pressing, or farther from home
• Interest - attitudes vary between people with ethical or conservation interests, animal industry practitioners, conservation groups, scientists and health professionals
• Culture - certain species of animals are seen as companion animals in one culture but as pests and/or food in other cultures.

The review recommended that a national-level survey of the Australian public's attitudes towards and understandings of, the main invasive animals be done. It also recommended that a review of the literature on social attitudes to pest control methods be done to complement this review.

An EndNote database of references is available from the senior author (see 'Contacts').