Synopsis: Decision Timing: pathways

Decision Timing: Pathways

Thinking about the timing of decisions along a pathway helps people frame adaptation as a series of decisions over time instead of a once-off choice. Adaptation options selected now may become ineffective or even maladaptive in the future. Thinking about decision timing draws people’s attention to the importance of path dependency in adaptation decision-making. This helps people understand how important it can be to take a long-term perspective in order to avoid inadvertently setting out along an undesirable path.

Stafford Smith, M. S., Horrocks, L., Harvey, A., Hamilton, C. (2011). Rethinking adaptation for a 4ºC World. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: 369:196-216. DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2010.0277