Bridging community perceptions and forest management: A BWS assessment of ecosystem service priorities in high-mountain Chile

Bridging community perceptions and forest management: A BWS assessment of ecosystem service priorities in high-mountain Chile | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Bridging community perceptions and forest management: A BWS assessment of ecosystem service priorities in high-mountain Chile Eduardo Acuña, Jorge Cancino, Cristobal Acuña This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7429085/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in Small-scale Forestry → Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This research was carried out in the high-mountain village of Malalcahuello, in the La Araucanía region of Chile, where the community depends on various ecosystem services, especially those associated with forest tourism. The Best-Worst Scaling (BWS) method was applied to collect and analyze local perceptions regarding the relative importance of six ecosystem services: water regulation, environmental education (‘Information for cognitive development’ according to TEEB classification), biodiversity conservation, recreation and tourism, carbon sequestration, and climate regulation. The study incorporates advanced econometric modeling (Mixed Logit and Latent Class models) to robustly address heterogeneity in community preferences, significantly enhancing its analytical contribution. Results reveal environmental education and biodiversity conservation as the highest prioritized services, reflecting the community’s immediate reliance on tangible ecosystem benefits. In contrast, carbon sequestration and climate regulation are perceived as less urgent, likely due to their abstract nature and long-term benefits. The conclusions underscore the need for tailored communication strategies and suggest policy development that integrates biodiversity conservation and environmental education into local forest management, advocating for adaptive co-management strategies to improve policy legitimacy and effectiveness. Environmental education Biodiversity conservation Ecosystem services Best-Worst Scaling (BWS) Sustainable forest management Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 24 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in Small-scale Forestry → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 15 Jan, 2026 Reviews received at journal 14 Jan, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 17 Dec, 2025 Reviews received at journal 24 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 25 Aug, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 25 Aug, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 23 Aug, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 23 Aug, 2025 First submitted to journal 21 Aug, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7429085","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":505355889,"identity":"edefb962-b945-4acf-9ea3-3017722d7cba","order_by":0,"name":"Eduardo Acuña","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAArklEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFCCBDApB2VYEK/FGMqQIF5LYgPRWvjZkx9+5t1hl77hePLBDww1RGiR7HlmLM17Jjl3w5lnyRIMx4jQYnAjwYyZt405d8ONHDMGxgYitNjfSP8G1FKfbnAj/xtxWgwkckC2HE4wuJHDRpwWiTNviiXnth03nHnmmbFEAjF+4W9P3/jhbVu1PN/x5IcfPtTYENaCChJI1TAKRsEoGAWjADsAAOaLNghP+SgMAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"Universidad de Concepción","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eduardo","middleName":"","lastName":"Acuña","suffix":""},{"id":505355890,"identity":"c9d9b7ed-ee22-4c60-a1ea-2605a6ba8dd0","order_by":1,"name":"Jorge Cancino","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidad de Concepción","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jorge","middleName":"","lastName":"Cancino","suffix":""},{"id":505355891,"identity":"05404a77-59d2-43e7-92f8-99787b94857e","order_by":2,"name":"Cristobal Acuña","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidad de Concepción","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Cristobal","middleName":"","lastName":"Acuña","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-08-21 20:23:12","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7429085/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7429085/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s11842-026-09626-9","type":"published","date":"2026-03-24T16:08:37+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":105755056,"identity":"bf783e79-0fa3-4753-859d-eb66930824b3","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-30 16:24:45","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":817614,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"ManuscritBW.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7429085/v1_covered_d1df6272-7c5c-49f1-8e8a-9cdc96726943.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Bridging community perceptions and forest management: A BWS assessment of ecosystem service priorities in high-mountain Chile","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"small-scale-forestry","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"ssfo","sideBox":"Learn more about [Small-scale Forestry](http://link.springer.com/journal/11842)","snPcode":"11842","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/ssfo/default2.aspx","title":"Small-scale Forestry","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Environmental education, Biodiversity conservation, Ecosystem services, Best-Worst Scaling (BWS), Sustainable forest management","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7429085/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7429085/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis research was carried out in the high-mountain village of Malalcahuello, in the La Araucan\u0026iacute;a region of Chile, where the community depends on various ecosystem services, especially those associated with forest tourism. 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