Transdisciplinary sea level rise risk communication and outreach strategies from stakeholder focus groups

Denise E. DeLorme, Sonia H. Stephens () and Scott C. Hagen
Additional contact information
Denise E. DeLorme: Louisiana State University
Sonia H. Stephens: University of Central Florida
Scott C. Hagen: Louisiana State University

Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, 2018, vol. 8, issue 1, No 2, 13-21

Abstract: Abstract As part of a larger transdisciplinary sea level rise (SLR) research project, six face-to-face, repeated focus groups with stakeholders (coastal resource managers and environmental communications professionals) were conducted in three states (Alabama, Florida, Mississippi) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. The purpose was to collect input on development of the project’s scientific research and models and gather future project outreach recommendations. This paper reports on the outreach-related results, which synergistically grew to encompass not only project-specific outreach but also broader concerns of stakeholders pertaining to risk communication. Participants believed outreach on SLR preparation was urgently needed and could be facilitated with a multifaceted targeted approach despite various challenges. Analysis revealed five target audience recommendations, six message content and format recommendations, and eight message delivery recommendations. Overall, the study provides empirical support for the perceived value and added benefits of social science, particularly qualitative methods, to foment transdisciplinary projects and for effective SLR communication. The paper concludes with a discussion of connections to the transdisciplinary research and risk communication literature followed by practical and future research implications.

Keywords: Transdisciplinary research; Outreach; Sea level rise; Stakeholder communication; Focus groups (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s13412-017-0443-8 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:jenvss:v:8:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s13412-017-0443-8

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/economics/journal/13412

DOI: 10.1007/s13412-017-0443-8

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences is currently edited by Walter A. Rosenbaum

More articles in Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences from Springer, Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().