DDRIG in DRMS: Exploring the Spread, Use, and Impact of Imprecise Language on Decision Making

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This project explores the spread, use, and impact of imprecise language (such as buzzwords) on collective action and decision-making, with a specific focus on environmental conservation issues. When navigating these complex issues, individuals and organizations must make decisions and communicate about how priorities are defined, how resources are allocated, what actions are to be taken, and with whom to cooperate. Not enough is known about the role that imprecise language and buzzwords play in this decision-making process. They may lead to confusion by creating ambiguity, but they may also bring diverse stakeholders together by increasing trust or a shared sense of purpose. Because there are limited resources available for the increasingly urgent issues of environmental conservation and a transition to a just climate future, this research serves an important role in informing how language may influence the allocation of such scarce resources.Through a multi-study, mixed methods approach, this project examines the use of one type of imprecise language – buzzwords – within the context of environmental conservation as a case study. It examines publications and engages with actors from academia, non-governmental organizations, international environmental conventions, and mainstream news media focused on conservation. Utilizing a computational text analysis, a series of interviews, and an experimental survey, this project seeks to: (1) develop and deploy a novel definition of buzzwords, (2) identify a list of buzzwords used across the conservation sector, (3) build an expert mental model of imprecise language and buzzwords, and (4) empirically test the impact of buzzwords on decision-making. This research meets a growing need to further our understanding of how language influences decision-making in contexts characterized by urgency and uncertainty, while providing useful information to the conservation community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.