Socioeconomic context for fisher-shark interactions in the Marianas

This dataset includes qualitative interview data aggregated and entered into an excel csv file. We collected data primarily during two trips to Guam and the CNMI in September and November of 2019. Initial points of contact were identified through conversations with WPRFMC staff, and Guam and CNMI agencies and fishers with representation at WPRFMC meetings. These conversations aided the development of our interview guide and provided referrals to additional participants (as per the snowball sampling method). More than 100 fishers, managers, and researchers across Guam and the CNMI’s Saipan, Tinian, and Rota were engaged through semi-structured interviews, fisher-organized meetings, and unstructured discussions in the field. We also conducted participant observations at multi-stakeholder meetings in Honolulu, Guam, and Saipan hosted by the WPRFMC and its Advisory Panels (AP) whenever possible. Data from interviews and participant observations were coded to track themes that emerged from the data. The coding scheme closely followed that of human dimensions research on fisher-shark interactions in the West Hawai'i region (Iwane 2019). This resulted in umbrella themes that housed participant commentary on dimensions of the fisher-shark interaction problem and its potential solutions. Other themes included participants’ descriptions of sharks and shark interactions, perceptions of fisheries management and stakeholder engagement, and descriptions of power dynamics and knowledge types in fisheries. Finally, coding captured important contextual information about Marianas’ fishing practices, cultures, economies, and participants’ identities and fishing motives, which cannot be separated from participants’ experiences in the Guam and CNMI communities.

These data document Guam and CNMI fishers', managers', and researchers' perceptions and observations of sharks and fisher-shark interactions through time. They also document these stakeholders' perceptions of both on-the-water and socioeconomic contextual considerations that frame and problematize fisher-shark interactions, and different potential solutions to such problems.

Main Hawaiian Islands

This dataset includes qualitative interview data aggregated and entered into an excel csv file.

While every effort has been made to ensure that these data are accurate and reliable within the limits of the current state of the art, NOAA cannot assume liability for any damages caused by errors or omissions in the data, nor as a result of the failure of the data to function on a particular system. NOAA makes no warranty, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty.

contact Point of Contact or Data Steward

contact Point of Contact or Data Steward

contact Point of Contact or Data Steward

contact Point of Contact or Data Steward

We collected data primarily during two trips to Guam and the CNMI in September and November of 2019. Initial points of contact were identified through conversations with WPRFMC staff, and Guam and CNMI agencies and fishers with representation at WPRFMC meetings. The latter included the Guam Department of Agriculture, CNMI Department of Fish and Wildlife, Micronesian Environmental Services, and fishers participating in the WPRFMC Advisory Panels (AP). These conversations also aided the development of our interview guide (see Appendix). Initial points of contact served as our first participants and provided referrals to additional participants. This referral process is typical of the snowball sampling method. More than 100 individuals across Guam and the CNMI’s Saipan, Tinian, and Rota were engaged through semi-structured interviews, fisher-organized meetings, and unstructured discussions in the field . Engaged individuals represented experiences from the fishing, research, and management communities in Guam and the CNMI. But, among stakeholders, Marianas’ fishing community had the great representation, and included a few individuals with experience as fish vendors. In Guam, data were collected through group discussion at a public meeting hosted by the Guam Fishermen’s Cooperative Association, and conversations with boat fishers returning from or departing for fishing trips at Hagåtña Boat Basin. In the CNMI, data were collected through group discussions at three fisher-organized meetings, one on each island, and through conversations with Saipan commercial fishers and their vendors in the field.

The data represent the opinions and beliefs of the participants of these interviews.

Data are currently stored on secured network drives at PIFSC, maintained by PIFSC IT services

This dataset includes qualitative interview data aggregated and entered into an excel csv file. We conducted semi-structured interviews and participant observation during fisher- and Council-organized meetings in September and November of 2019 with more than 100 fishers, managers, and researchers across Guam and the CNMI’s Saipan, Tinian, and Rota. We used a mixture of key informant, purposive, and snowball sampling. Interviews were conducted in the English, the primary language of all interviewees.

Interview transcripts were thematically coded in NVivo using a coding scheme similar to that of human dimensions research on fisher-shark interactions in the West Hawai'i region (Iwane 2019).