Analyzing social perception as a key factor in the management of protected areas: the case of the Sierra Nevada Protected Area (S Spain) Pelegrina López, Alicia Ocaña Peinado, Francisco Henares Civantos, Ignacio Rosúa Campos, José Luis Serrano Bernardo, Francisco Antonio Andalucia Sierra Nevada National Park Environmental management Protected areas cannot be considered as elements isolated from the human groups that inhabit them. Consideration of the social factor is fundamental to guarantee the success of any management model. In this sense, analyzing the perception of people who live in protected areas can be a key tool for the formulation of proposals for improving the existing models. This article explores perceptions of local residents in the Sierra Nevada Protected Area in Southern Spain and identifies the socio-demographic factors that affect these perceptions. The main objective is to generate relevant data for the protected area management team. The recommendations we can offer entail a review of the communication plan and participatory strategy considering social differences in perceptions of the local population. 2024-01-25T11:28:27Z 2024-01-25T11:28:27Z 2018 info:eu-repo/semantics/article Analyzing social perception as a key factor in the management of protected areas: the case of the Sierra Nevada Protected Area (S Spain) (2018) Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 61 (1), pp. 124 - 142. DOI: 10.1080/09640568.2017.1291413 https://hdl.handle.net/10481/87287 10.1080/09640568.2017.1291413 eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional Taylor and Francis Ltd