A survey of natural resource and national parks knowledge and attitudes of Dominican Republic citizens

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to ascertain the current level of ecological knowledge and attitudes of citizens of the Dominican Republic regarding national parks and natural resources. A cluster random sample of five regions was drawn, and a 49-item instrument was administered by face-to-face interviews to approximately 2,900 respondents located in 68 communities. We found a significant difference between sex of the respondents and knowledge about existence of national parks in the Dominican Republic. More than 84% of those interviewed had not visited a national park nor participated in environmental education-interpretive activities. The overall level of ecological knowledge was determined to be very low. The attitudes toward national parks and natural resources seemed to be negative.