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Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment

Publication ,  Journal Article
Burgman, M; Carr, A; Godden, L; Gregory, R; McBride, M; Flander, L; Maguire, L
Published in: Conservation Letters
2011

Expert judgments are a necessary part of environmental management. Typically, experts are defined by their qualifications, track record, professional standing, and experience. We outline the limitations of conventional definitions of expertise and describe how these requirements can sometimes exclude people with useful knowledge. The frailties and biases in expert judgments can interact with the social status afforded to experts to produce judgments that are both unassailable and wrong. Several approaches may improve the rigor of expert judgments; they include widening the set of experiences and skills involved in deliberations, employing structured elicitation, and making experts more accountable through testing and training. We outline the most serious impediments to the routine deployment of these tools, and suggest protocols that would overcome these hurdles. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Published In

Conservation Letters

DOI

ISSN

1755-263X

Publication Date

2011

Volume

4

Issue

2

Start / End Page

81 / 87

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology
 

Citation

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Burgman, M., Carr, A., Godden, L., Gregory, R., McBride, M., Flander, L., & Maguire, L. (2011). Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment. Conservation Letters, 4(2), 81–87. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00165.x
Burgman, M., A. Carr, L. Godden, R. Gregory, M. McBride, L. Flander, and L. Maguire. “Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment.” Conservation Letters 4, no. 2 (2011): 81–87. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00165.x.
Burgman M, Carr A, Godden L, Gregory R, McBride M, Flander L, et al. Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment. Conservation Letters. 2011;4(2):81–7.
Burgman, M., et al. “Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment.” Conservation Letters, vol. 4, no. 2, 2011, pp. 81–87. Scival, doi:10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00165.x.
Burgman M, Carr A, Godden L, Gregory R, McBride M, Flander L, Maguire L. Redefining expertise and improving ecological judgment. Conservation Letters. 2011;4(2):81–87.
Journal cover image

Published In

Conservation Letters

DOI

ISSN

1755-263X

Publication Date

2011

Volume

4

Issue

2

Start / End Page

81 / 87

Related Subject Headings

  • Ecology