2007/02/01 by Stephen G. Perz · 3 citations
Environmental Science · Psychology · #Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management #Land Use and Ecosystem Services #Forest Management and Policy #Forest dynamics #Context (archaeology) #Forest cover #Generalizability theory #Environmental resource management #Geography #Ecology #Economics #Psychology #Archaeology
paper · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9272.2007.00594.x
openalex publication_date 2007/02/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
This article critically reviews forest transition theory, which posits a decline in forest cover followed by expansion during the course of development. Whereas case studies in advanced industrial nations provided an empirical foundation, more recent cross-national modeling efforts and studies in developing regions have raised doubts. Forest transition theory has limitations in its concept of forests, its treatment of forest dynamics, its explanation for forest transitions, and its generalizability. This critique provides the basis for research needs to link studies of forest dynamics on various timescales to other land use/land cover research, as via historical-comparative methods and interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks.