Tropical Fish Forums

[duel_jetty]

What do you enjoy about fish? Would you ever take your fish to the vet? Do you think fish have a three second memory?

As part of a PhD research study at The University of Western Australia, we are now seeking volunteers to complete a simple, short online survey.

This study aims to give us a better understanding of why people keep fish and what factors can influence the welfare of aquarium fish.

It doesn't matter if you are an expert aquarist, just starting out, or have never even owned fish. All answers will be appreciated.

The survey takes just 10-15 minutes, is totally anonymous, confidential and can be completed online.

For more information and to take part in this research, please visit www.surveygizmo.com/s/233487/fish

This survey is purely for research purposes; you will NOT be contacted for commercial or marketing purposes. This study has been approved by the University of Western Australia's Human Research Ethics Committee.

ps. Once the results are out I'll post them on this thread

[Caton]

Done!
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[katienaha]

me too
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Let the current take you where you may not always want to go.

[Osinga]

Also done. I didn't know Italy did that. Interesting. I would support that.

[ernie]

Done that. Glad to help
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[unissuh]

Did the survey too - just a few comments about bias in questions:

I think you might get a very large proportion of people selecting discuss fish online - as you've posted this on multiple online forums, will probably bias your results as typical forum posters are somewhat better informed on various topics than your average fish owner. Even if you put a link to this survey up in local aquariums, a larger proportion would not bother to answer it as it requires more effort to get to the survey from a store than a hyperlink...

Vet training in Australia has *very* little on aquarium fish care and most serious hobbyists are more prepared to deal with diseases and treatment than your average vet (both in terms of equipment and knowledge). I believe the University of Melbourne only has a few lectures during the undergrad vet course on fish care which can basically be summed up in a single disease recognition article and the statement that good water quality will fix 95% of problems. Also, the logistics of taking fish to see a vet, are, frankly, impractical.

The types of fish that people care for will also skew their responses - e.g. marine keepers are probably even less likely than goldfish keepers to see a vet as a larger proportion are serious hobbyists and will have quarantine systems and medication on hand etc.

Also some smaller technical points you may have already considered:

I) Some of the numbers overlap on the how many fish do you own" question.

ii) What happens if smallest tanks are fry-rearing, food-rearing or quarantine tanks? I am "unsure" of any action regarding blanket legislation restricting the use of small containers because there are some valid uses that (in my opinion) are ethically sound e.g. the ones I just named.

iii) Do you provide any items to make your tank more natural or interesting - does live food represent decor?

iv) The average person completing this survey probably doesn't have a good understanding of memory and/or intelligence, which will probably skew the answers to the relevant questions. For example, I answered "false" to "fish have 3 second memories", but I would also answer "no" to "have your fish displayed any intelligent behaviour"; I believe most people would equate memory with intelligence.

v) I am pretty sure that the spread of answers to "how much knowledge do you have on the topic" is going to be very ambigious to intepret - to my knowledge I am no guru but I would be better informed than your average fish owner. I think the problems with this are two-fold. Firstly, people self-grading themselves require the same set of skills it takes to perform well I.e. people who typically perform worse are less able to accurately rate their own performance than those who perform well. I can't find the studies to back this up right now - will do some looking, but it is something to keep in mind. Secondly, the knowledge required to self-grade yourself in this topic is also the knowledge required to perform well - I would not rank keeping a goldfish for a year (or even 3) as "success", but your average fish owner would and thus they may rank themselves as expert fish owners.

Hope this helps with your analysis.
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Fishing in the Rivers of Light

[59FIFTY]

I did it! Pretty fun I guess. lol. HAha Thats awesome that Italy did that! GO ITALY!!!
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In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. - Martin

[Fern]

Done, I think you need to add largest tank size to the questions.
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I think I need a bigger tank......
http://fishaddicts.forumotion.com

[Shai]

I completed it as well. I agree with much of what unissuh said--many of the questions are quite subjective. For a survey like this you need to be as objective as possible.

Fern is also correct--I was surprised I was asked for smallest tank but not largest. Why is knowing the smallest tank more important than the largest?

It may have been wise to consult various communities about appropriate questions to ask before starting. : )
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What color is your straitjacket?

[UncleWillie]