Folk Management, "Soft Evolutionism," and Fishers' Motives: Implications for the Regulation of the Lobster Fisheries of Maine and Newfoundland

This paper uses an examination of the relations between indigenous management practices and formal regulations in the lobster fisheries of Maine and Newfoundland to revise some current assumptions about the nature of indigenous practices. It argues that many current conceptions of indigenous practices are based on a flawed theoretical position referred to as soft evolutionism. A rejection of soft evolutionism leads to the realization that the greatest contribution of indigenous practices to the formation of formal regulations is not to be found in their unintended conservative effects, but in their ability to reveal the conscious goals and values of fishers.