NEW RESEARCH: Why do people like (or dislike) zoos?

Written by Andrea Rizzardi Orlandi, PhD student at the University of Birmingham

Link to the paper here.

Why do some people see zoos as valuable conservation organisations while others consider them unethical? In our study of 350 UK adults, perceptions of animal welfare were the strongest predictor of zoo impressions, while perceptions of modern zoo roles mattered indirectly and broader environmental values did not.

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Animal welfare perceptions matter most

The clearest finding was that perceived animal welfare was the strongest predictor of zoo impressions. People who believed that animals in zoos were well cared for tended to have more positive impression of zoos. In contrast, people who had more negative perceptions of animal welfare tended to hold more negative views.

This may sound intuitive, but it is important. It suggests that perception of animal welfare is not simply one issue among many. Instead, it appears to be the central lens through which many people evaluate zoos as institutions.

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Modern zoo roles matter... but indirectly

We also found that people’s perceptions of modern zoo roles were important, but not in a simple direct way. Participants who believed zoos contribute to roles such as conservation, research, education, health and wellbeing, conservation finance, the economy, and policy tended to perceive zoo animal welfare more positively.

These welfare perceptions were, in turn, strongly associated with their overall impressions of zoos.

In other words, people may not judge zoos only by what zoos say they do. They may also ask, implicitly and explicitly: are these roles being achieved in a way that is compatible with good animal welfare?

This means that communicating zoo roles is important, but it cannot be separated from welfare. Conservation, education, and research messages may be more persuasive when the public also trusts that animals are experiencing good welfare.

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Environmental values do not shape zoo impressions

Contrary to expectations, people’s nature identity and connection to wildlife were not significant predictors of their overall impressions of zoos. One possible explanation is that strong environmental values can support contrasting positions: some people may value zoos for their conservation work, while others may oppose captivity because of concerns about animal welfare and the management of wild animals.

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Why this matters for zoos

These findings highlight that public impression of zoos are complex. Zoos should not assume that visitors, or the wider public, automatically interpret them as conservation organisations. Nor should they assume that people with strong environmental values will necessarily support them. Instead, zoos may need to engage more openly with the ethical tensions surrounding their work. This includes being transparent about animal welfare, explaining how welfare is assessed and improved, and showing how conservation, education, and research are connected to the lives of the animals in their care.

This is especially important when zoos seek to encourage conservation behaviour. Zoos are not only places in which conservation messages are communicated, they are also the messengers delivering them. Future research should therefore investigate whether people’s perceptions of animal welfare and institutional credibility affect their willingness to trust and act on zoo conservation messages.

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What's next?

Future research should explore how people form these impressions in more depth. For example, why do some visitors trust zoos as conservation organisations, while others remain sceptical? How do zoos visits change people’s perceptions of animal welfare? And how do these perceptions affect whether visitors engage with conservation messages?

Understanding the human side of zoos is essential if zoos want to strengthen their role in conservation and public engagement. Our study suggests that animal welfare perceptions sit at the centre of this process.

Written by Andrea Rizzardi Orlandi, PhD student at the University of Birmingham

Link to the paper here