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.