Abstract
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a popular conservation strategy, but their impacts on human welfare are poorly understood . To inform future research and policy decisions, we reviewed the scientific literature to assess MPA impacts on five indicators of human welfare: food security, resource rights, employment, community organization, and income . Following MPA establishment, food security generally remained stable or increased in older and smaller MPAs . The ability of most fishing groups to govern MPA resources changed . Increased resource rights were positively correlated with MPA zoning and compliance with MPA regulations . Small sample sizes precluded statistical tests of the impacts of MPAs on employment, community organization, and income . Our results demonstrate that MPAs shape the social well‐being and political power of fishing communities; impacts (positive and negative) vary within and among social groups; and social impacts are correlated with some—but not all—commonly hypothesized explanatory factors . Accordingly, MPAs may represent a viable strategy for enhancing food security and empowering local communities, but current practices negatively affect at least a minority of fishers . To inform policy making, further research must better document and explain variation in the positive and negative social impacts of MPAs .