Comparison of rural and urban attitudes to the conservation of Asian elephants in Sri Lanka: empirical evidence

There has been little study of economic and general attitudes towards the conservation of the Asian elephant. This paper reports and analyses results from surveys conducted in Sri Lanka of attitudes of urban dwellers and farmers towards nature conservation in general and the elephant conservation in particular. The analyses are based on urban and a rural sample. Contingent valuation techniques are used as survey instruments. Multivariate logit regression analysis is used to analyse the respondents’ attitudes towards conservation of elephants. It is found that, although some variations occurred between the samples, the majority of the respondents (both rural and urban) have positive attitudes towards nature conservation in general. However, marked differences in attitudes toward elephant conservation are evident between these two samples: the majority of urban respondents were in favour of elephant conservation; rural respondents expressed a mixture of positive and negative attitudes. Overall, considerable unrecorded and as yet unutilised economic support for conservation of wild elephants exists in Sri Lanka.     

Diversity in attitudes toward farming and patterns of work among farm women: A regional comparison

Attention to diversity in women's attitudes toward farming and in women's patterns of farm work activity expands our understanding of the linkage between agrarian structure, regional history, and the behavior and values of individual farm women. We combine several disciplinary and methodological approaches to reveal patterns in work and values in a Southern case and then verify the existence of similar patterns in the Midwest. Two divergent conceptions of women's relationship to farm and marital partnership were found in a Georgia study, the agrarian and the industrial, and we explore how they emerged in the context of the political and economic history of the South. We find these marital models are linked today to different patterns of farm work. We then extend the Georgia analysis to a statewide survey of Ohio farm women, where attitudinal diversity is not as marked, due to the stronger agrarian traditions of the Midwest and its distinct political economy. We find similar patterns, however, in Ohio farm women's work and affirm the validity of Carbert's categorization of Rosenfeld's survey items. Attention to diversity in the work patterns, values, and attitudes of farm women highlights that the term traditional is a misnomer when applied to Southern women and reinforces the value of multi-disciplinary approaches and regional comparisons.     

A longitudinal study of veterinary students and recent graduates 4. Gender issues

Objective To study differences in experiences, attitudes and opinions between female and male veterinary students and recent graduates.
Design Longitudinal study.
Population Students – 77 males and 77 females – who began studying veterinary science at The University of Queensland in 1985 and 1986.
Procedure Questionnaires were completed in the first and fifth year of the course, and in the second year after graduation. The data were analysed using the SAS System for Windows.
Results Females decided to study veterinary science at a younger age than males and were more influenced by 'a love of animals', the image of veterinarians as portrayed on television, an interest in living things and in the scientific study of disease. Males were more influenced than females in aspects of the workplace: bosses and money. There were no gender differences in their background in relation to farms, or to animals, or in their career plans. However females when in first year expected a lower initial income than males; an expectation that was realised in the first year after graduation. As first year students and also as veterinarians, females had stronger views than males on animal welfare issues, and also felt that the veterinary profession had a lower status relative to other professions.
Conclusions Significant differences in attitudes and experiences exist between males and females entering the veterinary profession. The situation of females in relation to income and status is consistent with that in other professions, where females have been disadvantaged compared with males.     

A longitudinal study of veterinary students and recent graduates 2. Views of the veterinary profession

Objective To examine the development of attitudes and opinions relating to the veterinary profession.
Design Longitudinal study.
Population Students, 154 in all, who began studying veterinary science at The University of Queensland in 1985 and 1986.
Procedure Questionnaires were completed in the first and fifth year of the course and in the second year after graduation. The data were analysed using the SAS System for Windows.
Results Few changes in opinion over time were found on the role of the profession, or on the status and prestige of veterinarians. Changes did occur in views on the characteristics of a successful veterinarian, with increases in the perceived importance of interpersonal skills, and of the capacity to work hard, and decreases in the perceived importance of honesty and integrity, dedication and the prevention of cruelty. Attitudes hardened over time in relation to costs of treatment, non-payment of fees and availability out of hours. Individuals changed their opinion on whether to counsel or report an incompetent colleague, but the changes in one direction were approximately equal to those in the opposite direction.
Conclusions The attitudes and opinions of veterinary graduates result from experiences before and during their veterinary course. In general the perceived importance of interpersonal skills increases during the course, and the level of altruism decreases.     

农民工群体的社会态度研究

分析了农民工社会态度的现状及原因,得到应不断改善农民工生存状况、健全社会保障体系、深化行政管理体制改革、切实维护农民工权益、提高农民工素质等启示。     

政策性农业保险试点地区农户参保行为的影响因素研究——以陕西省洛川县苹果保险为例

以陕西省洛川县为研究对象,依据问卷调查数据,选取家庭特征、农业生产风险、农户的风险态度和参保交易成本等指标,运用Logistic回归模型,对农户参保行为的影响因素进行分析与评价。结果表明,政府较保险公司对农户的参保行为影响更大;农业保险的保费并不构成农民参保的障碍;政府与保险公司的关系处理不当在很大程度上会影响当地农业保险的发展。为了促进农户参保,提出了相应的对策：一是增加农村教育投资,提高农民文化程度;二是政府利用其行政职能加大农业保险知识宣传力度;三是合理规划政府与保险公司之间的权利与义务;四是积极鼓励引导农户进行苹果的规模化生产,促进并形成规模经济。     

马克思主义信仰发展的探索性研究——基于广州大学生的多个案分析

马克思主义信仰的主体状态有信仰者、徘徊者、不信仰者之分,马克思主义信仰者当中也存在着自觉不自愿、自愿不自觉、自觉且自愿的不同境界。这些不同的状态和境界是在动态中生成变化的,有前进型、停滞型和后退型之别。当代大学生马克思主义信仰健康发展,但也易流向不健康的信仰,应强化大学生马克思主义信仰教育。     

Voluntary Stewardship and the Canadian Species at Risk Act: Exploring Rancher Willingness to Support Species at Risk in the Canadian Prairies

North American temperate grasslands and the wildlife species they support are increasingly imperilled, largely due to habitat loss and degradation. Most remaining prairie is privately managed and supports livestock production. In Canada, voluntary stewardship is the preferred approach for protecting species at risk on private lands under the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA). However, attitudes of private land managers toward species at risk and their willingness to engage in stewardship are poorly understood. With data from interviews with 42 livestock producers in Saskatchewan, Canada, we describe producer characteristics, attitudes, and awareness of species at risk and evaluate how these factors influence willingness to protect species at risk. Younger producers with increased formal education, awareness, and positive attitudes were more willing to support conservation of species at risk. Voluntary stewardship under the SARA may be enhanced by rewarding producers for sound habitat management and improving trust between producers and government agencies.     

A survey of the production and use of animal manures in England and Wales. III. Cattle manures

Abstract. A survey of cattle manure management was undertaken in England and Wales, in 1997, by postal questionnaire sent out to a stratified sample (by unit size) of 1750 dairy and 1750 beef producers. The level of response obtained, with 471 dairy farmers (27%) and 515 beef farmers (29%) returning questionnaires, reflects well on the interest shown by the industry and on the survey design. The survey provided information on manure production and storage, when and how applied and nutrient value. Dairy farms are estimated to produce manures in the form of c. 65% slurry and 35% farmyard manures (FYM) and, beef units, 80%FYM and 20%slurry (based on survey response data, animal numbers and calculations of undiluted outputs of excreta). Slurry storage within both dairy and beef systems is typically up to 3–6 months capacity, although there is no storage for an estimated 16% of dairy and 25% of beef slurry. Autumn and winter spreading is common practice, with 40–50% of slurry and 50–60% of FYM applied at that time. Although some evidence suggests that farmers make little allowance for the nutrient content of manures in planning fertilizer inputs, the results of this survey suggest that many farmers do make some effort to utilize manure nutrients. However, they currently fail to be assured by the advice available to them or they lack confidence in manures as nutrient sources for a number of technical reasons. Information provided by the survey may be important to policy makers, researchers and consultants, as well as farmers.     

Effects of conservation education on reasons to conserve biological diversity

To examine factors that might influence how people subscribe to different reasons for conserving biological diversity, we modified Ehrenfeld's [American Scientist 64 (1976) 660] classic reasons for conserving species and habitats into consumption, tourism, medicine, science, education, environmental baselines, ecosystem services, intrinsic value, and added another, human cultural heritage. We then explored the opinions of undergraduates enrolled in a classic conservation biology course, or a people and conservation course, about these nine arguments, using a 27-statement questionnaire. By matching responses made before and after each course, we found that students, in general, became more committed to using most of Ehrenfeld's arguments but that this was highly contingent on which conservation course that they had taken. None became committed to the argument that linked wildlife conservation to human culture, however. Course and grade that students attained influenced the extent to which students were sympathetic to different arguments but gender had no effect. These findings show that the type of conservation knowledge imparted to students makes them differentially sympathetic to many of the arguments used to advocate wildlife conservation.