Data from "Living with giants: Polish stakeholders' perception of European bison in human-dominated landscapes". Ecology & Society (ES-2026-17672)

Both in 2015 and in 2018, we examined the relationship between the basic knowledge of bison, stakeholders' professions, perceptions of bison, and perceptions of bison conservation goals in the region. This allowed us to asses changes in the perception of species and its conservation goals over time among the stakeholder groups during the implementation of the 'Diversification and Development of Bison Populations in north-western Poland' LIFE project.</p><p dir="ltr">This study utilized a mixed-method approach that included a questionnaire comprising 37 closed-ended and two open-ended questions (see file: Bison_data.xlsx).

It was conducted from May to August in 2015 and 2018, using a combination of face-to-face and telephone interviews, along with postal and online surveys. The survey method was customized for each stakeholder group to maximize response rates, minimize time, and reduce costs. A total of 142 and 170 survey questionnaires were collected in 2015 and 2018, respectively, meeting the planned participation rates for each stakeholder category in the sample.