Experiences of Animal Loss and Grief among Zoo Professionals and Volunteers: A Qualitative Study.

Zoo professionals and volunteers play essential roles in the wellbeing and conservation of a diverse array of animal species. Despite the growing body of literature revealing the psychological impacts of pet loss, there remains a dearth of information describing the experience of animal loss among those who work in zoo settings. This qualitative study explored the personal experiences of zoo animal loss among volunteers ( = 12), animal care and health professionals (ACHPs) ( = 135), and other zoo staff ( = 35) who participated in a larger mixed-method study.

Engaging internal and external audiences to develop and promote zoo-based conservation efforts.

As place-based conservation organizations, zoos are in a central position to support individuals in making small changes in their lives that will support the protection of wildlife and their habitats. This paper describes the secondary analysis of data collected from multi-phase front-end, exploratory evaluation that informed the development of a conservation action campaign in association with a non-profit, urban zoo. In phase one, internal organization staff were invited to attend workshops during which they brainstormed potential conservation actions that they felt were important for the zoo to promote.

Facilitating behavior change: Introducing the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change as a conservation psychology framework and tool for practitioners.

The primary opportunities for improved conservation and sustainability outcomes are through changing human behavior. Zoos, aquariums, and other public-facing biodiversity conservation institutions offer an important space for environmental learning and facilitating proenvironmental behavior change. We have focused, in this review, on examining common behavior change models as well as the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) of Behavior Change​​​​​, a widely regarded model within the health fields and, recently, in the fields of environmental and leadership studies, with new research applying the TTM specifically in a zoo setting.

Evoking empathy-An overlooked role of animal statues in zoos.

Empathy towards animals is a known influential factor in the likelihood for individuals to engage in conservation behavior, so it is of significant interest that the zoo community considers how to evoke constructive empathetic responses in their guests. To date, much of the research that has been conducted on empathy in zoos has focused on live animals, but are we overlooking a potential instrument of empathy-building? Based on observations made during an evaluation of guest interactions with a bronze animal statue, this paper will explore the potential for static, lifelike animal statues to serve as conduits for empathy-building and make a strong argument for the much needed research in this area.