Attitudes and Opinions

Opinion Leadership and the Perceived Health Benefits of Local Food

Layne S. Marshall, Melissa R. Taylor, and Alexa J. Lamm

Identifying the Attitudes and Preferences of Parents and Children for Seafood: Summary of Focus Group Results

Anh Sam, Xiang Bi, and Lisa House

Opinion Leadership and the Perceived Economics of Local Food

Layne S. Marshall, Melissa R. Taylor, and Alexa J. Lamm

Attitudes and Perceptions of Agricultural Water Use in Florida Expressed by the General Public and Local Officials

Courtney T. Owens, Alexa J. Lamm, and Ricky W. Telg

Farmers' Opinions about Bird Conservation and Pest Management on Organic and Conventional North Florida Farms

Susan K. Jacobson, Kathryn E. Sieving, Greg Jones, John McElroy, Beida Chen, Mark E. Hostetler, and Sarah W. Miller

How Do Floridians Perceive Their Role in Protecting Water Quality and Quantity Through Landscape Practices?

Laura A. Sanagorski Warner, Alexa J. Lamm, and Anil Kumar Chaudhary

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Water==

Navigating Public Perceptions: Exploring the Complex Social Dynamics of Invasive Species Management in Public Waters

Amanda Heinzmann, Olesya M. Savchenko, Candice Prince, and James Leary

In this publication, we present an overview of stakeholder concerns regarding hydrilla management, synthesizing insights gathered from the largest state-wide survey of Florida residents about invasive aquatic plant management in the state’s public waters. Our objective is to equip decision-makers, including agencies like FWC, with valuable insights. By understanding stakeholder concerns, decision-makers can formulate policies for the effective management of aquatic invasive species that garner public support.

Communicating About Water in the Floridan Aquifer Region: Part 6—Stakeholders’ Mental Models of Regional Water Challenges

Sadie Hundemer and Shenara Ramadan

If we could look into the minds of agricultural producers and environmentalists to see how they think about regional water challenges, we may be better able to help stakeholders understand each other’s perspectives and resolve perceived conflicts. A 2017–2018 study provides visual maps of producers’ and environmentalists’ conceptions of the relationship between water and the regional economy. The maps reveal that the groups think about the topic in fundamentally different ways. While surveyed producers possess an agricultural, operational-level view of the water-economic system that includes the protective actions taken by individual farmers and ranchers, environmentalists possess a watershed-level view of the water-economic system that highlights the detrimental collective impacts of the agricultural industry as a whole. The findings suggest steps that water communicators can take to reduce perceived conflict between the groups.

Conservation Subdivision: Post-construction Phase—Policy Directions and the Importance of Assessing Stakeholder Opinions

Daniel Feinberg and Mark Hostetler

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: Informed community decision-making

Relying on Research for Effective Response: A Survey Tool for Measuring the Impact of COVID-19 to Create Extension Resources

Lauri M. Baker, Ashley McLeod-Morin, Shelli Rampold, Anissa Zagonel, Ricky Telg, Angela B. Lindsey, Michaela Kandzer, Sandra Anderson, Sydney Honeycutt, Phillip Stokes, Valentina Castano, and Alena Poulin

The UF/IFAS Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (PIE Center) conducted a series of national public opinion surveys to examine the perceptions of Americans related to COVID-19. The PIE Center shared the survey data using Extension and outreach communication pieces, including issue guides, kinetic typography videos, webinars, and communication toolkits. Data collected from the PIE Center on Americans’ perceptions related to COVID-19 also informed two communication toolkits developed for Extension. This new 5-page article, published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, describes the instruments used to collect public opinion data related to COVID-19. Written by Lauri M. Baker, Ashley McLeod-Morin, Shelli Rampold, Anissa Zagonel, Ricky Telg, Angela B. Lindsey, Michaela Kandzer, Sandra Anderson, Sydney Honeycutt, Phillip Stokes, Valentina Castano, and Alena Poulin.

Communicating About Water in the Floridan Aquifer Region: Part 3—How the Right Messages and Messengers Can Increase Bipartisan Support for Water Policy

Sadie Hundemer and Shenara Ramadan

When water policies are introduced, they may not be universally supported. One stakeholder group or political party may be “for” the policy and contend that the public should vote “yes.” They may argue that the policy is fair to the parties involved or that it shows loyalty to affected communities. These are moral arguments used to sway public support. An opposing stakeholder group or political party may also issue moral arguments “against” the policy. They may argue that the public should vote “no” because the policy is not fair or is disloyal to impacted communities. In competitive policy scenarios like these, at least two factors affect public support for the policy – moral arguments and the identities of the communicators. Understanding how each of these factors influences policy preferences is key to creating a communication that is conducive to broad public support.