This thesis develops a framework for making ecologically sustainable decisions. It is an integrative thesis that draws its data from the fundamental concepts underlying the disciplines of psyschology, linguistics and biology. Its orientation is essentially theoretical, but its application is practical. It is presented in three parts. Part 1 sets out the theoretical context and proposes a basis for understanding decision-making processes in an interactive, evolutionary context. This part focuses particularly on subjective factors that play a role when an organism is in the process of making a decision. Part 1 provides an underpinning for the core of the thesis. Part 2 forms this core. It considers the context in which decisions are made and overviews current decision-making frameworks that aim at ecologically sustainable outcomes. It proposes a process of metabolic mapping of materials and energy flows across integrated socio-political bioregions as a basis for decision-making. Part 3 considers the implications of the approach in terms of its utility, reliability and validity. This part also looks at the role of ethics in decision-making and outlines the strengths and weaknesses of the new approach. The principle rinding is that research and decision-making are fundamentally distinct, often confused concepts. An integrative approach to decision-making is required to counter the increasing fragmentation in research and professional and administrative specialisation. A research tool that bridges the plethora of theoretical orientations is proposed. This involves the use of a semantic metalanguage to capture meaning in a rigorous and verifiable way. Such a metalanguage gives us a means of understanding the subjective experience of organisms, and in particular, their subjective perception of reality which guides their decision-making. A second finding is that, unlike research, which necessarily involves a process of context reduction, sound decision-making necessarily involves a process of context augmentation. And finally it proposes a method of metabolic mapping on a bioregional basis operating under the principle of subsidiarity as the most appropriate route towards sustainable decision-making.

Enron is examined as a critical case study to understand the role of information in the Enron’s Board’s decision-making processes. Three major events in the Enron failure were analyzed in detail using thematic analysis. Three themes were identified regarding the communication and use of information in Enron: interdependency of authority relationships, information control, and decision protocol and policies that shaped the information that management sent to the Board during the approval process. The Board was dependent on advisors to provide approvals first, prior to Board approval. The relationships between advisors and management influenced the information sent to the Board and affected controls used to monitor deals. The Board maintained that they were unaware of red flags, such as warnings related to incomplete disclosures and conflict of interest issues. The Board received information for arrangements which required Board approval but it had limited access to information regarding Enron’s operations.

Enron is examined as a critical case study to understand the role of information in the Enron’s Board’s decision-making processes. Three major events in the Enron failure were analyzed in detail using thematic analysis. Three themes were identified regarding the communication and use of information in Enron: interdependency of authority relationships, information control, and decision protocol and policies that shaped the information that management sent to the Board during the approval process. The Board was dependent on advisors to provide approvals first, prior to Board approval. The relationships between advisors and management influenced the information sent to the Board and affected controls used to monitor deals. The Board maintained that they were unaware of red flags, such as warnings related to incomplete disclosures and conflict of interest issues. The Board received information for arrangements which required Board approval but it had limited access to information regarding Enron’s operations.

Student Number: 9601911P - MA research report - School of Arts - Faculty of Humanities / The purpose of this study was to find out the social impact of community-based tourism on host communities, using a case study of Khama Rhino Sanctuary Trust. Community-based tourism is the new buzzword for tourism development nowadays, with its proponents promoting its potential to increase local benefits and to empower local communities in economic, social, environmental and cultural terms. This research sought to address closely the benefits and problems associated with community-based tourism in one community in Botswana. The research also attempted to find out how involved the community is in decision making processes involving the running of the Khama Rhino Sanctuary, a community-based initiative which is not only involved in tourism, but also in environmental education. The research findings indicate that there is no sense of ownership amongst the community and benefits have not been forthcoming. Although job opportunities have been created, these have not been increasing since the inception of the Sanctuary. Above all, the Sanctuary still relies heavily on foreign donors. In order to address the research questions, qualitative methods of data collection and analysis were employed.

This thesis has aimed to study steering process and institutionalization in the context of educational policy work. This has been conducted by using empirical material from the political decision-making process that preceded the implementation of a new national program on how principals should be educated and certified. By using an aggregated theoretical point of view containing new institutionalism and traditional Swedish curriculum theory, the process was analyzed from different perspectives. The results depict a process that contained several actors who tried to shape the principal education program differently. From the theoretical perspectives, the decision-making process could be understood as an act of both self-interest as well as trust in their own beliefs and cultural values. The result also tells us how an institutional environment is created and what that implies for actors who are parts of that environment.

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Aims: This thesis had three aims: to review evidence evaluating the effectiveness of decision aids at increasing cancer patients’ treatment-related knowledge and reducing decisional conflict; to explore the decision-making processes of ovarian cancer patients who had opted for or against CA-125 testing during post-treatment surveillance; and to elicit patients’ and health professionals’ views on the proposed development of a decision aid aimed at helping women decide for or against CA-125 testing during post-treatment surveillance for ovarian cancer. Methods: A systematic review was conducted of evidence relating to the effectiveness of cancer treatment-related decision aids at increasing treatment-related knowledge and reducing decisional conflict. In the qualitative study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with ovarian cancer patients (n = 18) and health professionals (n = 6) in an outpatient gynecological oncology clinic. Framework analysis was used to identify themes in the qualitative data. Results: Overall, results from the systematic review supported previous research where decision aids were found to improve patient knowledge and reduce decisional conflict across a range of cancer treatment-related decisions. However, the lack of psychometric support for the treatment-related knowledge measures used in the majority of the studies compromised their ability to address the review question. In the qualitative study, accurate knowledge about CA-125 testing in post-treatment surveillance was found to greatly influence participants’ decision-making processes. Most women with less knowledge about the test chose to have testing based on the false belief that earlier detection of recurrence would lead to earlier treatment and prolonged survival. There was strong enthusiasm from patients and health professionals for the development of the proposed decision aid to assist women facing this treatment decision. Conclusions: The systematic review findings add to previous research supporting the use of decision aids in cancer-related treatment decisions and advocate for their continued development, evaluation and implementation into the healthcare system. The need for a decision aid to ensure accurate knowledge about CA-125 and to aid decision-making for women with ovarian cancer was supported. As well as assisting women with this decision, the proposed decision aid may ultimately support health professionals in practicing shared decision-making regarding CA-125 testing with ovarian cancer patients.

This research explores the online purchase decision-making behaviour of consumers by introducing a comprehensive approach that covers two different viewpoints: a) individual-level behaviour and b) market-level behaviour. Individual-level behaviour enhances our understanding of how purchase decision-making processes unfold and whether they differ for different individuals. Drawing from decision analysis and consumer behaviour literature, four segments of online consumers are introduced based on two individual factors: decision making style and knowledge of the product. Archetypal behaviour of each segment is identified addressing variations in the process and process outcome for different groups. In addition, market-level behaviour investigates the actual behaviour of consumers in relation with different retailers in the market; it is based on the aggregated behaviour of 60,000 individuals. Not only behaviour in a particular website but also cross-visiting behaviour of consumers comparing multiple retailers is examined. For this purpose, a multi-level mixed-method approach is designed. Video recording sessions, think-aloud method, interviews and questionnaires are used to capture the dynamic decision-making process, segment consumers and measure the outcome of the process at individual level. Business process modeling approach and an adaptation of path configuration method are selected for modelling the process. Data from an Internet panel data provider, comScore, is analyzed to explore the market-behaviour of consumers visiting multiple retailers. A set of measurement frameworks, that have been developed to fully exploit the research potential of Internet panel data, are designed for this research. Two sectors of banking and mobile network providers are selected; this research methodology enables a much more detailed evaluation of online behaviour and can be applied in other consumer markets.A conceptual model of online purchase decision making is proposed synthesizing theory from three disciplines: consumer behaviour, decision analysis and Information Systems. This model is able to explain the complexities and dynamic nature of real-life decision-making processes. The results of individual-level analysis show that the synthesized model has an enhanced descriptive power. Purchase decision-making processes in the two sectors appear to be highly complex with a large number of iterations, being more unstructured in banking sector. The process is found to be influenced by the both individual characteristics and each segment exhibits a certain typology of behaviour. Behaviour in terms of the way stages are performed is identical across the two sectors; whereas it differs in relation to intensity of decision-making cycles, duration of the process and the process outcome, being a function of product/ market characteristics.The findings of market-level analysis revealed that banking websites are preliminary visited for using online banking services; despite the high portion of visitors, the intensity of research in these websites is low. On the contrary, mobile network providers attract a higher portion of consumers with purchase intentions and enjoy more intensive research. Consumers have a small consideration set in both sectors; and consider certain banks/providers rather than using the accessibility of all alterative on the Internet. It is evident that comparison sites play an important role in both markets affecting the behaviour of online consumers. Finally, the research stresses the use of the Internet as a complementary channel offering specific benefits in each sector.

The purpose of this research was to determine if presentation format, given a particular task to be performed, would affect the decision-making process of financial decision makers. The problem motivating this study is the potential for managers to make inefficient decisions when they use reports which are presented inappropriately for a given task.

This study tested dual-process decision-making models as predictors of between-person and within-person variation in risk-taking behavior. Additionally, the study integrated trait perspectives on self-control and impulsivity with decision-making processes to explain risk-taking. Participants were 580 college students ages 18 and older (M age = 20.45, range = 18 to 52 years). This study involved three parts. First, participants completed a survey assessing decision-making processes, self-control, impulsivity and risk-taking behavior. Second, a sub-set of participants completed laboratory-based measures of self-control and impulsivity. Third, participants completed a longitudinal online assessment of their risk-taking behavior. Dual-process models explained concurrent risk-taking, but only the reasoned decision-making process explained longitudinal risk-taking. The dual decision-making processes appear to operate through similar pathways, with components from each pathway exhibiting indirect effects through the other pathway. Impulsivity was linked to higher levels of risk-taking because of higher levels of behavioral intentions and willingness, whereas self-control was linked to lower levels of risk-taking because of lower levels of behavioral intentions. Between-person effects were as common as within-person effects, so future researchers are urged to consider decision-making processes averaged across forms of risk-taking and within each form of risk-taking. Altering decision-making pathways may be an effective way to intervene with individuals at high risk for engaging in risk-taking behavior.