A trichotomous choice survey was used to document local expert observations of five berry species locally known as: salmonberry (Rubus chamaemorus), blackberry (Empetrum nigrum), cranberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea), blueberry (Vaccinium uliginosum), and red berry (Rubus arcticus). The survey consisted of propositions concerning importance of specific berry species within Indigenous households; observations of changes in berry abundance, phenology, habitat, or availability; attribution of potential drivers of change; and instance of changes in behavior in response to changing berry resources. Respondents were asked to agree (yes) or disagree (no) with propositions or state that they were unsure of an answer (don’t know). The third option of don’t know was provided to respondents to prevent false or unreliable answers by forcing respondents to choose yes or no when they in fact do not know the answer.
The survey instrument was developed in iterative consultation with Tribal Council staff in each village and was approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) (OMB control number 1028-0122) per the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act (1995). A purposive sampling strategy (Schutt 2009) targeting community experts was used. Community experts were defined as individuals that had lived in their community for at least 10 years and had participated in berry harvesting consistently over this time frame. Project participants were identified by community contacts and Tribal Councils in each village and participation requirements were checked before beginning the survey. Respondents were provided with an informed consent sheet that explained the risks and benefits of participation, including that the results of the project would be made public, though their identities would not be shared. Surveys were administered in person with project personnel reading each proposition to the respondent and recording their answers on a paper survey. To avoid potential confusion due to local nomenclature respondents were shown a picture of each berry and asked to verify the supplied name or provide an alternate name before the propositions for each berry species were read.