Allen Will, Cruz Jennyffer, Warburton Bruce
Learning for Sustainability, PO Box 3018, Christchurch, 8244, New Zealand.
Landcare Research, Lincoln, New Zealand.
Environ Manage. 2017 Jun;59(6):956-965. doi: 10.1007/s00267-017-0839-y. Epub 2017 Mar 9.
Decision support systems are now mostly computer and internet-based information systems designed to support land managers with complex decision-making. However, there is concern that many environmental and agricultural decision support systems remain underutilized and ineffective. Recent efforts to improve decision support systems use have focused on enhancing stakeholder participation in their development, but a mismatch between stakeholders' expectations and the reality of decision support systems outputs continues to limit uptake. Additional challenges remain in problem-framing and evaluation. We propose using an outcomes-based approach called theory of change in conjunction with decision support systems development to support both wider problem-framing and outcomes-based monitoring and evaluation. The theory of change helps framing by placing the decision support systems within a wider context. It highlights how decision support systems use can "contribute" to long-term outcomes, and helps align decision support systems outputs with these larger goals. We illustrate the benefits of linking decision support systems development and application with a theory of change approach using an example of pest rabbit management in Australia. We develop a theory of change that outlines the activities required to achieve the outcomes desired from an effective rabbit management program, and two decision support systems that contribute to specific aspects of decision making in this wider problem context. Using a theory of change in this way should increase acceptance of the role of decision support systems by end-users, clarify their limitations and, importantly, increase effectiveness of rabbit management. The use of a theory of change should benefit those seeking to improve decision support systems design, use and, evaluation.
决策支持系统现在大多是基于计算机和互联网的信息系统，旨在支持土地管理者进行复杂的决策。然而，人们担心许多环境和农业决策支持系统仍未得到充分利用且效果不佳。最近为提高决策支持系统的使用率所做的努力集中在增强利益相关者对其开发的参与度上，但利益相关者的期望与决策支持系统输出的现实之间的不匹配继续限制了其应用。在问题构建和评估方面仍然存在其他挑战。我们建议将一种称为变革理论的基于结果的方法与决策支持系统开发结合使用，以支持更广泛的问题构建以及基于结果的监测和评估。变革理论通过将决策支持系统置于更广泛的背景中来帮助构建问题。它突出了决策支持系统的使用如何能够“促成”长期结果，并有助于使决策支持系统的输出与这些更大的目标保持一致。我们以澳大利亚有害野兔管理为例，说明了将决策支持系统开发与应用与变革理论方法相结合的好处。我们制定了一种变革理论，概述了实现有效野兔管理计划所需结果所需的活动，以及两个有助于在这个更广泛问题背景下进行特定决策的决策支持系统。以这种方式使用变革理论应该会提高最终用户对决策支持系统作用的接受度，阐明其局限性，并且重要的是，提高野兔管理的有效性。使用变革理论应该会使那些寻求改进决策支持系统设计、使用和评估的人受益。
