Information dissemination-diffusion and marine protected area approval in the Philippines

•We segmented fishers by exposure to information dissemination on coastal policy.•We also segmented fishers by their municipality of residence.•MPA approval depends on municipality and exposure to information dissemination.•Local governance style influenced the effectiveness of coastal policy communication.•Views of excluded fishers should be considered in information dissemination studies.

This article examined fishers' support for marine protected areas (MPAs) resulting from information dissemination (i.e., government-to-citizen communication) and diffusion (i.e., citizen-to-citizen communication) processes on coastal policy. We surveyed fishers (N = 505) in three municipalities (i.e., Oslob, Santander, Samboan) in Southern Cebu, Philippines. Two independent variables were examined. The first was municipality, where different local governance arrangements influence coastal policy communication. Second, a K-means cluster analysis identified segments of fishers based on whether and how they were informed about coastal policies in their municipality. The dependent variables were: (a) the perceived effect of the MPAs on fishers' livelihoods, (b) approval of specific MPA policies, and (c) general approval of the MPAs. Two-way ANOVAs resulted in significant interaction effects between the independent variables and highlighted the combined influence of local governance and information dissemination/diffusion on fishers' approval of MPAs. Fishers informed through information dissemination reported a significantly higher approval of their MPA(s) than did fishers informed through information diffusion or those who were not exposed to government-initiated communication. The influence of information dissemination on MPA approval may justify the time and resources required to engage fishers through direct communication. The cluster analysis helped reveal citizen-to-citizen dynamics that impact the effectiveness of coastal policy communications.