Table 1 Explanatory codes and examples of classifying aims, outcomes, and gains into specific categories
From: What’s new from the zoo? An analysis of ten years of zoo-themed research output
Aim classes | Outcome classes | Outcome gains |
|---|---|---|
Behaviour | Animal and ecosystem health | Advancing knowledge |
-e.g., time-activity budgets, ethograms | -e.g., successful treatment of X disease or improved environmental quality | -Specific (e.g., application to an individual species or behaviour) |
Cognition | Behaviour change (human) | -General (e.g., wide-spread application across taxa) |
-e.g., problem solving and learning. | -e.g., Measurable influences on attitudes towards conservation work | Advancing practical application |
-Specific (e.g., development of a species-specific husbandry guideline) | ||
Conservation and breeding programmes | Conservation and sustainability | -General (e.g., application of positive welfare indicators for all fish) |
-e.g., EEP or SSP initiatives | -e.g., improved population viability or successful increases in reproductive rate | Data deficient (more research needed) |
Husbandry and training | Husbandry and welfare | -e.g., no conclusive support for hypotheses or lack of relationship between variables |
-e.g., development of best practice guides | -e.g., husbandry can be improved based on the results from research | |
Methods | Pure biology | |
-e.g., how to collect X data in Y situation | -e.g., “blue sky” results that add to subject knowledge | |
Nutrition | Scientific validity | |
-e.g., diet survey and nutritional analysis | -e.g., demonstrate the efficacy and relevance of a method or way of collecting data | |
Physiology and reproductive technologies | ||
-e.g., endocrinology studies | ||
Veterinary medicine and animal health | ||
-e.g., advances in treatment | ||
Visitor studies | ||
-e.g., how do zoo guests view animals? | ||
Welfare | ||
-e.g., enrichment, quality of life assessment |
