Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand
Bats are wildlife and distribute globally. In Thailand, there are hundreds of bat species in different locations within four regions. However, few motivations and influences for having contact with bats have been documented. This sequential qualitative study was conducted in ten provinces representi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Heliyon |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844020310525 |
| _version_ | 1818520878661500928 |
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| author | Kanokwan Suwannarong Karnsunaphat Balthip Phitsanuruk Kanthawee Kangsadal Suwannarong Santisith Khiewkhern Cecilia Lantican Thanomsin Ponlap Nisachon Bupha Alongkorn Amonsin |
| author_facet | Kanokwan Suwannarong Karnsunaphat Balthip Phitsanuruk Kanthawee Kangsadal Suwannarong Santisith Khiewkhern Cecilia Lantican Thanomsin Ponlap Nisachon Bupha Alongkorn Amonsin |
| author_sort | Kanokwan Suwannarong |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Bats are wildlife and distribute globally. In Thailand, there are hundreds of bat species in different locations within four regions. However, few motivations and influences for having contact with bats have been documented. This sequential qualitative study was conducted in ten provinces representing the four regions of Thailand from September 2016 to June 2017. The study was designed to obtain information on villagers' attitudes, perceptions, beliefs and cultural contexts in relation to bats. Focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with 305 respondents. Of these respondents, 142 (46.6%) reported coming into contact with bats through various activities, such as hunting, eating, cooking, collecting bat guano, cleaning bat feces, and finding carcasses in houses and communities. Villagers called bats by different names in different regions. They reported having been in contact with bats in different ways based on occupations, bat species, bat habitats, attitudes, perceptions, beliefs toward bats, and cultural contexts. Villagers in the northern and northeastern regions reported having regularly eaten bats. In contrast, the respondents in the central region did not eat bats due to local norms, religious beliefs, and regulations. By ethnicity, the Blu and Thai Dum groups reported coming into contact with and eating bats more often than the Thais. Our results provide evidence-based information on the human-bat interface in different regions in Thailand. The results of this qualitative study could be useful for strategic planning of proper education and interventions for bat conservation, bat contact behavior, and risk of bat-borne diseases among villagers in the future. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T01:43:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7c8b95538a6f4f34983238b7f98aa17d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2405-8440 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T01:43:28Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Heliyon |
| spelling | doaj.art-7c8b95538a6f4f34983238b7f98aa17d2022-12-22T01:24:58ZengElsevierHeliyon2405-84402020-06-0166e04208Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in ThailandKanokwan Suwannarong0Karnsunaphat Balthip1Phitsanuruk Kanthawee2Kangsadal Suwannarong3Santisith Khiewkhern4Cecilia Lantican5Thanomsin Ponlap6Nisachon Bupha7Alongkorn Amonsin8Center of Excellence for Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases in Animals, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, ThailandFaculty of Nursing, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla Province, ThailandSchool of Health Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai, ThailandThe Office of Disease Prevention and Control 7 Khon Kaen, Khon Kaen, ThailandFaculty of Public Health, Mahasarakham University, Mahasarakham Province, ThailandSUPA71 Co., Ltd, Bangkok, ThailandSUPA71 Co., Ltd, Bangkok, ThailandFaculty of Nursing, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen Province, ThailandCenter of Excellence for Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases in Animals, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand; Corresponding author.Bats are wildlife and distribute globally. In Thailand, there are hundreds of bat species in different locations within four regions. However, few motivations and influences for having contact with bats have been documented. This sequential qualitative study was conducted in ten provinces representing the four regions of Thailand from September 2016 to June 2017. The study was designed to obtain information on villagers' attitudes, perceptions, beliefs and cultural contexts in relation to bats. Focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with 305 respondents. Of these respondents, 142 (46.6%) reported coming into contact with bats through various activities, such as hunting, eating, cooking, collecting bat guano, cleaning bat feces, and finding carcasses in houses and communities. Villagers called bats by different names in different regions. They reported having been in contact with bats in different ways based on occupations, bat species, bat habitats, attitudes, perceptions, beliefs toward bats, and cultural contexts. Villagers in the northern and northeastern regions reported having regularly eaten bats. In contrast, the respondents in the central region did not eat bats due to local norms, religious beliefs, and regulations. By ethnicity, the Blu and Thai Dum groups reported coming into contact with and eating bats more often than the Thais. Our results provide evidence-based information on the human-bat interface in different regions in Thailand. The results of this qualitative study could be useful for strategic planning of proper education and interventions for bat conservation, bat contact behavior, and risk of bat-borne diseases among villagers in the future.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844020310525AttitudeBatBeliefContactInterfacePerception |
| spellingShingle | Kanokwan Suwannarong Karnsunaphat Balthip Phitsanuruk Kanthawee Kangsadal Suwannarong Santisith Khiewkhern Cecilia Lantican Thanomsin Ponlap Nisachon Bupha Alongkorn Amonsin Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand Heliyon Attitude Bat Belief Contact Interface Perception |
| title | Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand |
| title_full | Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand |
| title_fullStr | Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand |
| title_short | Bats and belief: A sequential qualitative study in Thailand |
| title_sort | bats and belief a sequential qualitative study in thailand |
| topic | Attitude Bat Belief Contact Interface Perception |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844020310525 |
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