Examining assumptions in wildlife management: A contribution of human dimensions inquiry

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Abstract
Making good decisions in wildlife management is difficult given the needs and desires of competing stakeholder groups. Good decisions require good information, but in the absence of such information managers must operate on assumptions. Managers’ ability to make the most appropriate decisions can be enhanced if assumptions about people's beliefs, attitudes, preferences, and behaviors are scrutinized through human dimensions inquiry to assess their reliability. To demonstrate this value of human dimensions inquiry, we consider a set of assumptions that have formed the bases for some wildlife management decisions, drawing primarily on our experience in New York. For each assumption, we review examples of human dimensions findings that have helped wildlife managers verify or revise a particular application of the assumption. In the examples, examination of assumptions has helped wildlife managers provide increased benefits for wildlife stakeholders.