Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study
Abstract Wildlife trade is a worldwide threat to biodiversity. It is a complex problem, and to deal with it, one must analyse its constituting factors, some of which are specific to certain geographic areas. Although Mexican laws have prohibited selling wild products, Mexico is still both a source a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2024-04-01
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| Series: | People and Nature |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10596 |
| _version_ | 1797226545513758720 |
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| author | Marielise Gutiérrez‐Ibarra José Miguel Jiménez Lara Francisco Amador‐Cruz Evangelina Camargo‐Rivera O. Eric Ramírez‐Bravo |
| author_facet | Marielise Gutiérrez‐Ibarra José Miguel Jiménez Lara Francisco Amador‐Cruz Evangelina Camargo‐Rivera O. Eric Ramírez‐Bravo |
| author_sort | Marielise Gutiérrez‐Ibarra |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Wildlife trade is a worldwide threat to biodiversity. It is a complex problem, and to deal with it, one must analyse its constituting factors, some of which are specific to certain geographic areas. Although Mexican laws have prohibited selling wild products, Mexico is still both a source and consumer of exotic wildlife; however, there is limited data on why people participate in this type of trade. This paper aims to understand people's motivations for participating in the wildlife trade. 192 surveys on a population segment unrelated to it and 30 in‐depth interviews were performed to determine the patterns of wildlife trade in Mexico. Finally, we performed two in‐person interviews with collectors of large‐scale animals. The outcomes demonstrated that Facebook was the social media showing more wildlife content. Most participants were aware of the diverse impacts of the animal trade, as well as, that offering, buying and having certain animals was a crime but were assuaged due to common knowledge that authorities do not investigate social media. Finally, based on the findings from the in‐person interviews, it was observed that the individuals engaged in heavy trafficking believed that their actions were altruistic in nature. We concluded that the primary motivations for wildlife trade in Mexico were economic status and prestige within their social groups. In that order, our study is a pioneering attempt to determine motivations in Mexico, which could be a basis for future regional studies. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T14:26:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-421ea48af7fa4f028d915629f3839d5e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2575-8314 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T14:26:37Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | People and Nature |
| spelling | doaj.art-421ea48af7fa4f028d915629f3839d5e2024-04-03T04:30:39ZengWileyPeople and Nature2575-83142024-04-016267668610.1002/pan3.10596Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case studyMarielise Gutiérrez‐Ibarra0José Miguel Jiménez Lara1Francisco Amador‐Cruz2Evangelina Camargo‐Rivera3O. Eric Ramírez‐Bravo4Departamento de Antropología Universidad de las Américas Puebla Puebla MexicoDepartamento de Antropología Universidad de las Américas Puebla Puebla MexicoDepartamento de Ecología y Recursos Naturales, Centro Universitario de la Costa Sur Universidad de Guadalajara Jalisco MexicoMotocle A.C. San Andrés Cholula Puebla MexicoCentro de Agroecología, Instituto de Ciencias Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla Puebla MexicoAbstract Wildlife trade is a worldwide threat to biodiversity. It is a complex problem, and to deal with it, one must analyse its constituting factors, some of which are specific to certain geographic areas. Although Mexican laws have prohibited selling wild products, Mexico is still both a source and consumer of exotic wildlife; however, there is limited data on why people participate in this type of trade. This paper aims to understand people's motivations for participating in the wildlife trade. 192 surveys on a population segment unrelated to it and 30 in‐depth interviews were performed to determine the patterns of wildlife trade in Mexico. Finally, we performed two in‐person interviews with collectors of large‐scale animals. The outcomes demonstrated that Facebook was the social media showing more wildlife content. Most participants were aware of the diverse impacts of the animal trade, as well as, that offering, buying and having certain animals was a crime but were assuaged due to common knowledge that authorities do not investigate social media. Finally, based on the findings from the in‐person interviews, it was observed that the individuals engaged in heavy trafficking believed that their actions were altruistic in nature. We concluded that the primary motivations for wildlife trade in Mexico were economic status and prestige within their social groups. In that order, our study is a pioneering attempt to determine motivations in Mexico, which could be a basis for future regional studies. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10596conservationconsumer researchdemand reductionillegal wildlife tradesocial media |
| spellingShingle | Marielise Gutiérrez‐Ibarra José Miguel Jiménez Lara Francisco Amador‐Cruz Evangelina Camargo‐Rivera O. Eric Ramírez‐Bravo Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study People and Nature conservation consumer research demand reduction illegal wildlife trade social media |
| title | Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study |
| title_full | Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study |
| title_fullStr | Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study |
| title_short | Motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in Mexico: A case study |
| title_sort | motivations behind wild animal consumption in social media in mexico a case study |
| topic | conservation consumer research demand reduction illegal wildlife trade social media |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10596 |
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