Legitimacy, local participation, and compliance in the Galápagos Marine Reserve

We analyze the compliance behavior of artisanal fishermen in the Galápagos Marine Reserve. Our empirical analysis explores the role of the reserve's participatory management system as a determinant factor in decisions to violate regulations. The results indicate that, along with traditional enforcement tools (detection and penalties), the perception of legitimacy that regulations and local organizations have among the boat-owners, their individual sense of belonging, as well as their participation levels in their related organizations are also relevant to the compliance/violation behavior. Policy implications to improve compliance with fisheries regulations in the reserve are discussed.