| Summary: | Wildlife conservation requires public support. Growing evidence has suggested that childhood nature experience plays an essential role in forming one's environmental commitment. Yet, the link between nature contact and children's willingness to conserve wild animals has been examined little, especially for children from developing countries. Here, we conducted a questionnaire survey of school children from 4th to 5th grade and investigated their knowledge, likeability of species, and willingness to conserve wild animals, as well as the associations between nature contact (direct and indirect forms) and these outcomes. A total of 842 students at six primary schools in Nanning, Southern China, participated in the survey. Results showed that children's willingness to conserve wild animals was positively associated with both direct (time spent outdoors) and indirect (watching natural programs or reading natural books) nature contact frequency, their knowledge of species, and their likeability of species. Moreover, children's knowledge and likeability of species were also positively associated with nature contact frequency (direct and indirect forms). Therefore, wildlife conservation would benefit from environmental education and child care policies that enable children to spend time outdoors and learn about nature in multiple ways.
|
|---|