Exploring links between education, forest management intentions, and economic outcomes in light of gender differences in the United States

Forests cover 34% of the land in the United States, and nearly 40% of these forests are owned by family forest landowners. While forests were traditionally owned and managed by men, a quarter of forest landowners in the United States were women in 2018. Yet, the effects of educational attainment and gender differences in forestland management intentions and economic outcomes such as receiving regular income from timber harvest and hunting leases are largely overlooked in the existing forestry literature. Using data of 157 female and 791 male forest landowners in Georgia, a vital forestry state located in the Southern United States, we used multi-group structural equation models (SEM) to explore the links between education, forest management intentions, and economic outcomes. Our findings show that education predicts forest management intentions in family forest landowners. However, education is negatively associated with regular income from harvesting timber and hunting leases. These findings suggest that higher educated landowners might prioritize other forest management objectives, such as conservation, recreation, and non-timber products. Multi-group SEM shows that educational achievement has similar effects on forest management intentions and receiving regular income from timber harvest and hunting leases in female and male forest landowners. Our study will feed into the current policies and programs promoting sustainable management of forest resources among family forest landowners across the United States.