How do new norms concerning resource management spread? Norm entrepreneurs are people who are well-positioned and active in advocating for new norms. The role of norm entrpereneurs has not been considered in voluntary resource management practices; instead, current research indicates that these decisions are driven primarily by economic and personal considerations. However, social influence theory suggests that social influence plays an important but overlooked role in spreading norms. Neighbors, private associations, and public management officials are some of the significant norm entrepreneurs in resource management. Interviews with private resource owners will be conducted to ask how decisions are made, who influences these decisions, and where owners obtain information about strategies. Interviews with select officials will also be conducted to ask about interactions within the community, advice provided, and outreach methods employed.
The project's intellectual merit rests in its development of the concept of norm entrepreneurs in a setting with many individual decisionmakers, and in a natural resource context. This project will explain how such social influence impacts individual resource owners' decision-making. Using incentives to encourage voluntary adoption of practices has been shown to be a socially acceptable alternative to state or federally mandates implemented through regulations. This research will explore the likelihood of enrolling in voluntary incentive programs, the level and type of incentive required to elicit enrollment, and the degree to which social influence can encourage greater levels of enrollment. The project's broader impacts are substantial; the results will be applicable to a wide range of regions with an interest in implementing alternative regulation methods for natural resource management. Effective natural resource management on private lands is a question of great economic importance.
