Documenting perceptions and misconceptions of shark conservation among students in Ghanaian coastal communities within the context of shark tourism

Author:

Amponsah Samuel1ORCID

Affiliation:

1. University of Energy and Natural Resources

Abstract

In Ghana, students have rarely been engaged in shark conservation programs. The study aimed to provide the perceptions and misconceptions about sharks among students in Ghana. From the Western region of Ghana, two senior high schools were visited from March to June 2023, and 111 questionnaires were administered to them with the assistance of a resident teacher. Most of these students believe that i) sharks do not eat humankind as food, ii) fishing activities do not affect shark behavior, iii) the decline in fish does not affect the shark population, and iv) fishermen in Ghana face a lot of shark attacks. On perceptions, most of the students perceived that i) shark fishing should not be stopped, ii) shark ecotourism will yield more money than shark fishing, and iii) MPAs will conserve shark population in Ghana. From the study, it was evident that knowledge and attitudes showed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.61). Therefore, incorporating shark related topics into the curricula of schools, taking students on educational tours to the fishing communities, and engaging them in outreach programs will enlighten their knowledge of sharks and foster their awareness of shark conservation and shark ecotourism in Ghana.

Publisher

Journal of Tourism Theory and Research

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3