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  • 1.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    How do people aggregate value? An experiment with relative importance of criteria and relative goodness of alternatives as inputs2022In: Journal of Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis, ISSN 1057-9214, E-ISSN 1099-1360, Vol. 29, no 3-4, p. 259-273Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The concept of importance of criteria is used as a central element in several decision making contexts, specifically in value aggregation, e.g. as an input to decision support tools. For example, in the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) decision makers are asked to estimate how much more important one criterion is than another. However, it is not clear how people understand aggregation models based on importance of criteria in decision making situations. The purpose of this descriptive study is to investigate if people find an aggregation model in simple value aggregation tasks which remind of the way AHP elicits the input. Further, the purpose is to investigate if people's tendency to find a model depends on their cognitive abilities. In an exploratory laboratory experiment, participants assessed which of two alternatives is the best, based on information about the importance of two criteria and how good the two alternatives are compared to each other with respect to these criteria. The results confirm that people are willing to use importance of criteria and goodness of alternatives as input in value aggregations and show three main models for aggregation. More participants with higher numeracy applied a clear model compared to those with lower numeracy. None of the identified models was one of AHP's models but one of them reminded of one of the ways input can be aggregated in the AHP. The three models identified in the experiment are based on lexicographic order, multiplication and a combination of multiplication and addition. How the results could be used in a prescriptive context is discussed in the paper.

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  • 2.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Elmqvist, Åsa Katarina
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Hjelmblom, Magnus
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Multi-criteria reasoning models for value aggregation in wind power permit application assessment2023In: Renewable Energy Focus, ISSN 1755-0084, Vol. 45, p. 210-219Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Assessment of an application for wind power establishment is a multi-criteria problem including the coreproblem: whether to grant permission or not. In Sweden, County Administrative Boards decide the outcomes of these kinds of applications. Five permit officers were interviewed to investigate the difficultiesand the type of value aggregation in this work, and to test reasoning models as possible decision supporttools. The commonly used type of aggregation was condition-based aggregation. Aggregation based onvalue differences, which means weighing together aspects for and against the wind power establishment,was considered difficult to apply by the respondents. Most of them agreed that some of the aspects thatspeak against granting permission could be aggregated but that aggregation of all aspects would be harddue to differences between aspects. In addition, the value of the main aspect that speaks for permission,climate friendly energy supply, is very difficult to estimate. Thus, aggregation based on value differencesis a difficult question and how it could be performed is discussed in the paper. If policymakers wish tomake it possible to take both positive and negative aspects into consideration and to discuss thetrade-offs transparently, the investigated method can be a way forward.

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  • 3.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Tradeoffs between self and environment in environmental judgment and decision making2021Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
    Abstract [en]

    One of the greatest challenges of today is to change our behavior to act more pro-environmentally to reduce global warming. We need to make sacrifices for the environment, e.g., use a means of transportation that take a longer time but causes less CO2 emission. The present thesis aims to study different factors (intrinsic, extrinsic motivational, and extrinsic motivational-neutral information) that influence us when making tradeoffs between self and environment. Paper I examined how an anchor (a reference price) and an ecolabel influence price judgments. It was found that both a judgment of an objective fact (product price) and a subjective preference (willingness to pay for the product) were affected by an anchor. An eco-label resulted in higher judgments of objective facts. People with higher environmental concern were more affected by an anchor when stating their willingness to pay than their low concern counterparts. In Paper II and Paper III, an interaction between a high anchor and a normative message that put the emissions into context was found when making a tradeoff between CO2 emissions and travel time for a flight (Paper II) or a car journey (Paper III). People with higher concern for the environment gave a longer travel time when they received a high anchor (Paper II and Paper III) or no anchor (Paper III). Paper IV investigated how a survey measuring environmental concern can be divided to different indices and how they predict answers in a tradeoff task. The result suggests that a two-factor structure divided into ecocentric and anthropocentric concern is a possible alternative and that people scoring higher on any of the environmental concern indices were willing to travel for a longer time. Taken together, the results show that normative messages, anchors, and concern for the environment are factors that can influence and interact when people make tradeoffs between self and environment in environmental judgment and decision making.

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  • 4.
    Andersson, Hanna
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Marsh, John E.
    University of Central Lancashire, UK; Luleå University of Technology.
    Wallhagen, Marita
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    What influences people’s tradeoff decisions between CO2 emissions and travel time? An experiment with anchors and normative messages2021In: Frontiers in Psychology, E-ISSN 1664-1078, Vol. 12, article id 702398Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    One of the today’s greatest challenges is to adjust our behavior so that we can avoid a major climate disaster. To do so, we must make sacrifices for the sake of the environment. The study reported here investigates how anchors (extrinsic motivational-free information) and normative messages (extrinsic motivational information) influence people’s tradeoffs between travel time and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the context of car travel and whether any interactions with environmental concern (an intrinsic motivational factor) can be observed. In this study, people received either a CO2, health or no normative message together with either a high anchor, a low anchor, or no anchor. People that received both a high anchor and a CO2 emission normative message were willing to travel for a longer time than those that only received a high anchor. If a low anchor was presented, no differences in willingness to travel for a longer time were found between the three different conditions of normative message groups, i.e., CO2 normative message, health normative message, or no normative message. People with higher concern for the environment were found to be willing to travel for a longer time than those with lower concern for the environment. Further, this effect was strongest when a high anchor was presented. These results suggest that anchors and normative messages are among the many factors that can influence people’s tradeoffs between CO2 emission and travel time, and that various factors may have to be combined to increase their influence over pro-environmental behavior and decisions.

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  • 5.
    Andersson, Hanna
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Environmental concern: Structure and use for prediction of a tradeoff between CO2 emissions and travel timeManuscript (preprint) (Other academic)
  • 6.
    Andersson, Hanna
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Wallhagen, Marita
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Sörqvist, Patrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Education and Business Studies, Department of Business and Economic Studies.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Anchoring effect in judgments of objective fact and subjective preference2021In: Food Quality and Preference, ISSN 0950-3293, E-ISSN 1873-6343, Vol. 88, article id 104102Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The way by which various sources of external information interact in their effects on judgment is rarely investigated. Here, we report two experiments that examine how two sources of external information—an anchor (a reference price) and an eco-label—influence judgments of an objective fact (product price) and a subjective preference (willingness-to-pay for the product). Participants’ price judgments were drawn in the direction of the anchor point, whereas the eco-label resulted in higher judgments of objective fact (Experiment 1) but did not influence subjective preference (Experiment 2). Interestingly, the eco-label seemed to strengthen the effect of the high anchor in judgments of objective fact. Further, participants with higher environmental concern answered a higher price on the subjective preference questions when they received a high anchor, as well as a lower price when they received a low anchor in comparison to the low environmental concern group. This study demonstrates that various external information sources can strengthen each other’s effects on consumer belief about products, while the effects are weaker for consumers’ preferences. The implications of the results for decision making are discussed.

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  • 7.
    Andersson, Hanna
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Sörqvist, Patrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science. Luleå Tekniska Universitet.
    Threadgold, Emma
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK.
    Beaman, Philip
    University of Reading, Reading, UK.
    Ball, Linden
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK.
    Marsh, John E.
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK, Luleå Tekniska Universitet.
    The negative footprint illusion is exacerbated by the numerosity of environment-friendly additions: unveiling the underpinning mechanisms2024In: Journal of Cognitive Psychology, ISSN 2044-5911, E-ISSN 2044-592XArticle in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The addition of environmentally friendly items to conventional items sometimes leads people to believe that the carbon footprint of the entire set decreases rather than increases. This negative footprint illusion is supposedly underpinned by an averaging bias: people base environmental impact estimates not on the total impact of items but on their average. Here, we found that the illusion’s magnitude increased with the addition of a greater number of “green” items when the number of conventional items remained constant (Studies 1 and 2), supporting the averaging-bias account. We challenged this account by testing what happens when the number of items in the conventional and “green” categories vary while holding the ratio between the two categories constant (Study 3). At odds with the averaging-bias account, the magnitude of the illusion increased as the category size increased, revealing a category-size bias, and raising questions about the interplay between these biases in the illusion.

  • 8.
    Bengtsson, Ola
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Värdefokuserat tänkande som grund till förändringsteori för kommunal samverkan2022Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    When managing cooperation between municipalities, it is crucial to agree on the objectives of the cooperation and to have a common understanding of how the goals are to be achieved. This is important not least in order to be able to take rational joint decisions. Municipal executive directors from six collaborating municipalities have participated in the study, which examines how two methods, taken from value-focused thinking and from theory of change, can be used to develop different partners' individual goals for collaboration, merge these into a common goal structure and then use the common goal structure to create theories of change that describe how collaborative goals can be assumed to be achieved. One purpose of the study is to carry out the process and produce this material, for the benefit of the municipal executive directors and the municipalities' collaboration going forward. The scientific purpose is to see if the methods under these conditions are usable together, above all by analyzing the work process itself and the results produced in form of theories of change. The study is a case study conducted through action research, where the municipal executive directors' natural roles and forms of meeting are the arena where the joint activities and the academic study are developed together. The study describes how six individual goal structures are united in a common goal structure for collaboration. Two theories of change are then created regarding certain parts of the common goal structure. The analysis of the implementation and the material produced suggests that there is potential in combining the two methods that have been used. In value-focused thinking there is a big focus on formulating and structuring goals, in theory of change a focus is on identifying groups' common perceptions and assumptions regarding the mechanisms and processes that need to take place for change to occur and goals to be realized. Even though this is a single and limited study, it is still clear that value-focused thinking and theory of change have elements that complement and strengthen each other.

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  • 9.
    Bergman, Per
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Tjänstekvalitet som mellanbegrepp: Om bedömning av tjänstekvalitet vid Vux Västerås2022Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Att tillhandahålla vuxenutbildning är en skyldighet som Sveriges kommuner åläggs enligt Skollagen. I samma lag anges att inriktningen på det systematiska kvalitetsarbete ska vara att de nationella målen (som uttrycks i Läroplan för Vuxenutbildningen) uppfylls. Denna översiktliga formulering gör att det i stor utsträckning blir upp till varje enskild kommun att utveckla egna rutiner för arbetet med kvalitet inom vuxenutbildningen. I Västerås genomförs varje år en kvalitetsgranskning av de skolor som verkar inom den kommunala vuxenutbildningen. Granskningen omfattar bland annat strukturella förutsättningar, uppnådda resultat och efterlevnad till lag- och förordningskrav. Västerås kommun skapar och skickar ut en kvalitetsmall som fylls i av respektive skola. Detta material utgör sedan en grund (av flera) för den granskning av tjänstekvalitet som varje skola årligen genomgår. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur tjänstekvalitet inom vuxenutbildningen i Västerås har operationaliserats till mätbara indikatorer inför kvalitetsgranskningen 2021.Utifrån teorin om mellanbegrepp analyseras vilka aspekter kommunen har bestämt ska ligga till grund för tjänstekvalitet inom Vux Västerås och också vilka följder det får om en skola inte lever upp till det kommunen betraktar som tillräcklig kvalitet.

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  • 10.
    Blomskog, Stig
    et al.
    Södertörns högskola.
    Hjelmblom, Magnus
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    An Analysis of a Sustainability Index2021In: Sustainable Consumption and Production, Volume 1: Challenges and Development / [ed] Ranjula Bali Swain; Susanne Sweet, Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021, p. 39-63Chapter in book (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In this chapter, we perform a conceptual analysis of a household sustainable consumption index, whose construction is based on guidelines in a handbook issued by OECD. We conclude in our analysis that the designers of the index treat the concept 'sustainable consumption' as a descriptive concept, and argue that this interpretation is a conceptual mistake.  A consequence of this mistake is that the construction of the index is treated as a kind of statistical and empirical problem only. Instead, we argue that sustainable consumption is a specific kind of value concept named intermediate concept, whose function is to link descriptive grounds with normative consequences, and thus that the construction of the index is a normative problem. That is, the construction of a sustainable consumption index should be regarded as a normative multi-attribute decision process. A policy implication of our study is that when measuring sustainability, a decision analytic approach based on an adequate interpretation of the concept sustainability as an intermediate concept should be employed. In order to avoid low validity of sustainability indices as a result of making a conceptual mistake, it is possible to explicitly treat the construction of a sustainability index as a normative multi-attribute decision process that can be aided by decision support tools. The relevance of our analysis to policy makers and other stakeholders is that it contributes to a deeper understanding of what kind of concept sustainability is and what it means to measure such concepts. Without a proper understanding of the nature of this concept, there is an obvious risk of low validity of its measurement.

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  • 11.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Sörqvist, Patrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Education and Business Studies, Department of Business and Economic Studies.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    The psychology of balancing gains and losses for self and the environment: Evidence from a carbon emission versus travel time tradeoff task2021In: Journal of Environmental Psychology, ISSN 0272-4944, E-ISSN 1522-9610, Vol. 74, article id 101574Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    If human behavior is to become more sustainable, people will have to be willing to sacrifice personal gains and benefits for the sake of sustainability. Decisions will have to involve making tradeoffs between what is good for the self and what is good for sustainability. In the present paper, we studied the psychology of such tradeoffs in the context of a carbon dioxide (CO2) emission versus travel time tradeoff task. The experiment investigated how intrinsic motivational factors (environmental concern), extrinsic motivational information (a normative message) and extrinsic motivation-neutral information (anchors) influence these tradeoffs. The results revealed that extrinsic factors interact in their effects on tradeoffs such that participants were willing to travel for a longer time for the benefit of less CO2 emissions when they were externally motivated by a normative message, but only when this motivational emphasis was combined with a high anchor. Furthermore, this interaction was particularly strong in participants with high environmental concern. We conclude that extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors interact in their effect on making people willing to accept personal losses in exchange for sustainability gains and that these motivational factors may have to be combined with further extrinsic information to influence decisions.

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  • 12.
    chrysochoou, christos
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Multicriteria Decision Analysis in Wastewater Treatment2022Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    The wastewater industry is critical for both current and future human life. At the same time, competitive conditions of market spaces lead to technology evolution reaching continuously new frontiers. While many wastewater treatment plants are designed identically in different global loci, wastewater characteristics are unique and therefore decisions related to wastewater treatment technologies are very critical. Wastewater characteristics vary due to cultural and climate factors, among other things and thus, each wastewater treatment technology must be studied independently. Hence, decision analysis and decision making are an integral part of the industry. A multi criteria decision analysis (MCDA) has been applied in this thesis, including a fictional decision-making problem. Furthermore, this thesis describes an analytic approach to a complex decision-making problem in wastewater treatment by using multi attribute utility theory (MAUT). This thesis assigns utility values, applies Swing Weighting (SW) which is not commonly used in the wastewater industry and assesses weight coefficients for the utility functions for each criterion. The goal is to illustrate how proportional scoring can be used to assign utility values in different aspects related to wastewater treatment, how SW can be performed to assess weight coefficients that are related to wastewater treatment and finally how the additive utility can be applied to deliver the total utility. For this reason, a hypothetical decision problem was developed, in which, the decision maker can select amongst three different wastewater treatment technologies using sustainability criteria. This is a multi-dimensional problem that requires the use of a structured approach to analyze the options accordingly. More, six criteria are used to rank three different wastewater treatment technologies with respect to sustainability. Finally, the MCDA results from this hypothetical decision problem show how proportional scoring, SW, and the additive utility could be used in the selection of a wastewater treatment technology however it should be tested with real life decision problems. 

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  • 13.
    Danetskaya, Volha
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    'Känslig personuppgift' som mellanbegrepp2023Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Den snabba tekniska utvecklingen och en ökad globalisering som har skett i världen under de senaste decennierna har bidragit till en större exponering av digitala data och därmed skapat större risker för otillbörlig behandling och användning av person-uppgifter. Skydd av personuppgifter regleras av en EU-förordning som heter Gene-ral Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) som trädde i kraft 2018. En kategori av per-sonuppgifter som har fått ett starkare skydd i GDPR är känsliga personuppgifter. Syftet med denna studie är att göra en inledande analys av begreppet ’känslig per-sonuppgift’ som ett mellanbegrepp, med fokus på begreppets grunder och följder vad beträffar tillåten behandling av känsliga personuppgifter inom ramen för GDPR. Genomförandet består av analys av källmaterial som utgörs av lagtext som beskriver begreppet ’känslig personuppgift’ och undantagssituationer som tillåter hantering av denna uppgift (Artikel 9 i GDPR). Resultatet är en analys av begreppet ’känslig per-sonuppgift’ med sju grunder och två villkorliga normativa följder. Följderna innehål-ler tio undantagsvillkor för tillåten behandling av känsliga personuppgifter. Det har visat sig att både grunderna och de tio undantagen potentiellt innehåller mellanbe-grepp som inte är så tydligt formulerade i lagtexten och därför kan kräva en djupare analys. Det kan också vara fallet att det finns ett behov av att vidare analysera grun-derna och undantagen som så kallade grundöppna mellanbegrepp.

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  • 14.
    Fallström Mujkić, Pia-Johanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Decision and Policy Making in the European Union: Role of EU Agencies in the decision and policy making in the area of chemicals and food safety2019Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    EU regulations, decisions and policy making are matters that concern every resident in the EU and risk and benefit assessment and analysis form part of the EU decision and policy making. This thesis discusses the decision/policy making in the EU and the risk assessment activities of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), as well as ECHA’s socio-economic analysis activities. It also studies the role of the European Commission and the Comitology process. The EU regulates what chemicals or food stuffs/ingredients, for instance additives, may be made available in the European market. How the decisions are made about what is allowed and what not, and who makes those decisions, is not necessarily evident due to the complexity of the processes. In this thesis the decision making at different stages of the EU regulatory processes has been identified and analysed in order to find out by whom and how the decisions are made. The method used was a literature search with an overview of the existing theories and research from the areas of EU decision making, risk assessment and risk management. The regulatory processes were studied from a decision making perspective with the aim to identify and record possible decision making opportunities of different actors beyond the European Commission. The decision making opportunities were classified and organised based on their level of impact to the processes. Two real cases were studied: the restriction of lead in jewellery under REACH Annex XV restrictions and the authorisation of ammonium chloride in food under Flavourings regulation. Decision making opportunities and methods were looked for in those processes. It was found that while, in the studied cases, there appeared possibilities to ensure science based good regulatory decision/policy making, it remained uncertain and possibly politicised. It was also revealed that in certain steps the processes lacked transparency.

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    Decision and Policy Making in the European Union: Role of EU Agencies in the decision and policy making in the area of chemicals and food safety
  • 15.
    Fridolfsson, Simon
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Osäkra tillsammans: Osäkerhet i robusta beslut och omvärldsanalys inom svensk offentlig sektor2021Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    The growing climate crisis demand sustainable societies. The timelines concerning these questions can be very long which create situations where decisions must be made under uncertain conditions. Within Swedish public sector there are many approaches to handling such uncertainty. Two of the most prominent approaches are “omvärldsanalys” or environmental scanning (also known as intelligence analysis), abbreviated to OA, and “robust beslutsfattande” or robust decision making abbreviated to RB. The latter approach is a Swedish interpretation of the approaches for decision making under deep uncertainty (DMDU). The Swedish interpretation of RB and OA have not been developed in unison or with regards to one another. Despite this, they seem to be part of the same decision-making cycle within Swedish public sector. This study assumes that a common understanding of uncertainty could be an important foundation for cooperation within this decision-making cycle and the study inquires which understanding RB and OA has of uncertainty, as well as what this means with regards to cooperation between the two approaches. After an introduction of the two approaches, the study discusses the concept of uncertainty which leads to the theory behind so called Cynefin-frameworks and a definition of uncertainty as “lacking knowledge of cause and effect in the future”. The study operationalizes the theory behind Cynefin-frameworks by conducting a content analysis on text-based material collected and culled by a literary overview. A coding scheme is constructed based on the four main domains presented in the theory behind Cynefin-frameworks and the chosen texts are broken down and coded in two separate analysis, one for each approach, according to the so called “four point-method”, which is the recommended method for constructing a Cynefin-framework. The result, consisting of two sense-making frameworks, shows both approaches populating the same domains and thus have a similar understanding of uncertainty. Both approaches indicate an understanding of uncertainty partly based on the lack of knowledge of the future similar to epistemic uncertainty, and partly an understanding described as originating in the variability of the explored futures. Determining which of these understandings will be more prominent at a g iven time or in a given context seems to be the so called “contextual uncertainty” understood as uncertainty with regards to problem framing. A basis for cooperation thusly exists provided that the two approaches manage the contextual uncertainty jointly. Therefore, the studies initial assumption is also corroborated.

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  • 16.
    Gunnarsson, Marie
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Nudging vid rekrytering2021Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Nudging is used in more and more situations to help people make better decisions. It is also used in the field of recruitment to help recruiting managers to avoid com- mon pitfalls when making decisions. This thesis reviews and analyses Thaler and Sunstein ́s definition on nudging, then examines whether a few selected nudging techniques qualify as nudging based on Thaler and Sunstein’s definition, criteria and tools, and if they can be matched with Sunstein ́s ten most important nudging tech- niques. The thesis seeks to identify which thought system the nudges are intended to influence based on Kahneman's concept of system 1 and system 2, as well as whether the risk of pitfalls is more prevalent during certain parts of the recruitment process. Finally, the thesis seeks to identify whether there is a conflict between the use of nudging and the state's requirement for merit and skill as the basis for state employment. Theresultsshowthatinsevencasesoutofeight,theselectednudges could be categorised as nudges according to Thaler and Sunstein's definition, even though the recruitment nods are designed for specific application areas. The defini- tion would benefit from a reference to cognitive behavioral barriers to make the connection to the behavioral science basis. It would also benefit from more clearly linking the choice architecture to the time of the decision situation. Research sug- gests that decision-makers fall victim to rapid system 1 decisions when recruiting and shed light on how to avoid it; either by nudging system 1 avoid pitfalls or by ac- tivating the decision maker's system 2, to make them actively think through their choices. Only three of the selected nudges could be matched against Sunstein's 10 most important nudging techniques. No conflict or ethical dilemma was identified in connection with the use of nudges in recruitment in the state, since the nudges aim to ensure that it is merit and skill that are the basis for all decisions. 

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  • 17.
    Hager, Frida
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    @Risk som beslutsverktyg vid uppstart av ett bolag i USA: Monte Carlo-simulering2023Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Entreprenörer och start-ups står inför många utmaningar och en framtid som kännetecknas av osäkerhet och risktagande. Teknikutvecklingen leder till optimering inom alla områden och företag försöker minimera kostnader och maximera vinster och effektivitet. Stora företag har ofta tillgång till beslutskonsulter och beslutsstöd såsom Monte Carlo-simuleringar för att förutsäga framtida scenarier. Syftet med denna studie är att utveckla ett beslutsstöd för småföretagare, en simuleringsmodell, konstruerad för att fånga relevanta aspekter av osäkerhet och modellera framtida scenarier. En deterministisk resultatbudget i Excel är ryggraden i denna modell och de stokastiska Monte Carlo-simuleringarna skapas med Excel plug-in funktionen @Risk. En serie moduler tillhandahåller nödvändiga data för att beräkna företagets vinst över fem år och simulerar två parallella affärsmodeller. Input till modellen är produktionskostnader, prissättning och antal sålda enheter. Monte Carlo-simuleringarna visar fördelarna med de två affärsmodellerna och indikerar de aspekter som har störst påverkan på vinsten. Beslutsstödet kan användas som stöd för beslutsfattande och som grund för samtal med potentiella partners.

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    @Risk som beslutsverktyg vid uppstart av ett bolag i USA: Monte Carlo-simulering
  • 18.
    Hjelmblom, Magnus
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Paasch, Jesper M.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Geospatial Sciences.
    Paulsson, Jenny
    KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
    Edlund, Marina
    The Swedish Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authority.
    Bökman, Fredrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Towards Automation of the Swedish Property Formation Process: A Structural and Logical Analysis of Property Subdivision2019In: Nordic Journal of Surveying and Real Estate Research, ISSN 1459-5877, E-ISSN 2341-6599, Vol. 14, no 1, p. 29-63Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The ongoing digitalization of public administration and increasedautomation of legal decision-making bears promise to benefit citizens,businesses and other stakeholders through simpler and more efficient civilprocesses, and thus has great impact on the urban planning and buildingprocess. However, automation of decision-making that is directed orconstrained by normative systems such as laws, regulations and policies,requires a detailed and accurate representation of these concepts andtheir constituent parts, and the domain to which they are applied. Thispaper combines two perspectives on formalisation and classification oflegal relations within the urban planning and building domain. In a crossdisciplinaryfashion, the paper analyses and describes a small part of thisdomain at a higher level of abstraction and formalization using two differentanalysis instruments. Using these tools, we perform structural and conceptualas well as logical analyses of two specific snapshots of a fictitious propertysubdivision case in Sweden, focusing on the legal relations between differententities and parties involved in the specific situations. The structural analysisuses the Land Administration Domain Model ISO 19152:2012 standardformalism, and the logical analysis is based on the notion of atomic types oflegal relations. The paper discusses some of the strengths and weaknesses ofthe two tools regarding the formal representation of rights, restrictions andresponsibilities of different parties in the land administration domain, as wellas how the tools relate to each other and how they can be aligned. This papertakes one step towards a deeper understanding of the domain, and identifyareas for future research that may provide better conditions for efficient andtransparent use of geospatial information, and automation of the propertysubdivision process and other related civil processes.

  • 19.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Ball, Linden J.
    University of Central Lancashire, United Kingdom.
    Marsh, John E.
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, United Kingdom; Luleå University of Technology.
    Can the negative footprint illusion be eliminated by summative priming?2021In: Journal of Cognitive Psychology, ISSN 2044-5911, E-ISSN 2044-592X, Vol. 33, no 3, p. 337-356Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    People’s belief that one or more environmentally friendly items that are added to a set of conventional items can reduce the total environmental impact of these items (the negative footprint illusion) could lead to unwanted environmental consequences. An averaging bias seems to underpin this illusion: people make their estimates based on the average of the environmental impact produced by the items rather than the accumulated sum. We report four studies that used various priming manipulations to explore whether people’s preoccupation to think in terms of an average can be eliminated by fostering a summative mindset. The results demonstrate that participants avoid succumbing to the negative footprint illusion when the critical judgment task is preceded by tasks that engender a summation judgment. Our evidence indicates that the negative footprint illusion can be tempered when a primed concept (summation) is used adaptively on subsequent judgments, thereby correcting for bias in environmental judgments.

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  • 20.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Marsh, John E.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Bell, Linden J.
    Eliminating the Negative Footprint Illusion by Fostering a Summative Mindset using a Transfer ParadigmManuscript (preprint) (Other academic)
    Abstract [en]

    People’s belief that an environmentally friendly item that is added to a set of conventional items has the ability to reduce the total environmental impact of these items could lead to unwanted environmental consequences. An averaging bias seems to underpin this negative footprint illusion: people make their estimates based on the average of the environmental impact produced by the items rather than their accumulative sum. We report a study using a problem-solving transfer paradigm to explore if this preoccupation to think in terms of an average can be eliminated by fostering a summative mindset. The results demonstrate that, participants can correctly estimate that environmental impact will increase when a “green” car is added to a set of petrol cars, but only when this task is preceded by a task that engenders a summation judgment. Our evidence indicates that the negative footprint illusion can be tempered by problem-solving transfer whereby a primed concept (summation) is used adaptively on subsequent judgments, thereby correcting for bias in environmental judgments.    

  • 21.
    Hruska, Katrin
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Vad är egentligen meningen med att läggas in på sjukhus?: Beslut om fortsatt vård efter ett akutbesök utifrån ett värdefokuserat tankesätt2023Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [sv]

    Enligt Hälso- och sjukvårdslagen ska sjukhusvård finnas tillgänglig när så krävs, men det finns inga tydliga riktlinjer för när detta gäller. Tidigare studier visar att många patienter läggs in på sjukhus trots avsaknad av medicinsk indikation. Syftet med studien var att studera vilka mål specialistläkare i akutsjukvård (akutläkare) vill uppnå med ett beslut om fortsatt vård efter en bedömning på akutmottagningen och att skapa en målstruktur för beslutet om fortsatt vård. Tretton akutläkare intervjuades individuellt. Utifrån en innehållsanalys av intervjuerna skapades en målstruktur för beslutet om fortsatt vård. Denna diskuterades och utvecklades i fyra gruppdiskussioner med samma akutläkare. Resultatet visade att akutläkarnas mål är att maximera patientens hälsa, maximera jämlikheten i vården och att maximera patientens nöjdhet med föreslaget alternativ. I patientens hälsa ingår att minimera risk för död, minimera sjuklighet och maximera välbefinnande, som i sin tur består av att maximera trygghet, trivsel och bekvämlighet respektive minimera lidande. Målet att maximera jämlikheten i vården delades upp i att maximera jämlikheten på akutmottagningen, inom slutenvården respektive inom övriga sjukvården. Målstrukturen visualiserar fundamentala och instrumentella mål och kan användas för att synliggöra målkonflikter och möjliggöra en diskussion om nödvändiga avvägningar.  

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  • 22.
    Jarl, Gustav
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Risk för fotsår vid diabetes: Är objektiva riskfaktorer associerade med upplevd risk?2020Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Foot ulcers are a common and difficult complication of diabetes, and can end with amputation of the foot. Although some patients fear amputation more than death, adherence to self-care to prevent ulceration is generally low. This raises the question about how people at risk of foot ulcerations perceive risks. The aim the thesis is to explore whether people with and without known risk factors for foot ulcerations (male gender, previous foot ulcer, and previous amputation) experience different levels of probability of developing foot ulcers the coming 12 months. A questionnaire was sent to 1230 patients at two prosthetics and orthotics clinics in Örebro and Gothenburg. 443 responses were included in the analysis. The association between each risk factor and perceived risk of foot ulcer was investigated with a Mann-Whitney test and Chi-square test. Subsequently, all risk factors were included in a multiple logistic regression analysis with perceived foot ulcer risk as the dependent variable. The Mann-Whitney test and Chi-square test showed that people with previous foot ulcers experienced significantly higher risk (p<0.05) than people without previous foot ulcers and people with amputation experienced higher risk than people without amputation. Gender was not significantly associated with perceived foot ulcer risk. In the logistic regression analysis, previous foot ulcer was significantly associated with higher perceived risk of future foot ulcers, while sex and amputation were not significant. Presumably, amputation was not significant in the logistic regression analysis because there was a strong association between previous foot ulcer and amputation. The model explained only 8,3 % of the variance in perceived foot ulcer risk, which indicates that there may be several other factors affecting perceived risk of foot ulcers. The lack of significant association between sex and perceived risk can be interpreted as an optimism bias among men and/or a pessimism bias among women, which would be interesting to investigate further in future research. Future studies should use more precise methods to measure subjective risk, measure the negative value of foot ulcers and investigate interventions to promote a more realistic perception of risk to promote self-care and reduce risk of foot ulcer.  

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  • 23.
    Johansson, Johanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Samverkan vid utskrivningsprocessen: Mål och målstrukturer enligt värdefokuserat tänkande2023Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Cooperation between different care actors, activities and levels is more or less found in all parts of health care. Shortcomings in this collaboration can mean a risk of deviations occurring. The law on collaboration on discharge from inpatient healthcare came into force on January 1, 2018. The purpose of the law is to create a secure, safe and smooth transition for patients who are discharged from inpatient care to outpatient care and social care. There is a need for a common goal image between decision makers within the discharge process when it comes to what one wish to achieve with collaboration. This thesis examines the goals and values of five decision-makers with regard to collaboration during discharge from inpatient care back to outpatient care and social care. The decision makers are based on various activities within outpatient care as well as municipal activities. With value-focused thinking as a frame of reference, five semi-structured interviews have been conducted. For each respondent a goal structure consisting of fundamental and instrumentalgoal has been constructed. At the top of a goal structure, you find the fundamentalgoals that are important in themselves and are presented hierarchically. Instrumental goals are important because the lead on to another goal, these are arranged in a network. The goal structures in this thesis show the different respondents’ values and goals that they wish to achieve when collaborating with each other. When constructing the respondents goal structures, it emerged that several of the respondents had similar fundamental goals, namely to maximize safe care, social care and safety for the individual and relatives in the discharge process and to maximize the clarity and effectiveness of the discharge plan. Several of the instrumental goals for achieving the fundamental goals were the same for the respondents. Through well-functioning communication, meeting places and understanding of each other’s areas of responsibility, efficient handling of matters can be achieved. Working person-centered and working in discharge teams are also recurring instrumental goals. All instrumental goals ultimately lead to the instrumental goal of creating clear discharge planning, which then leads on to the fundamental goals. The result can be used to identify decision-making opportunities that are in line with the decision-makers’ fundamental values when planning the individual’s actions upon discharge from inpatient care.

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  • 24.
    Julin Nyquist, Kristina
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Strategic, fundamental and means objectives of different stakeholders in collaboration between universities and surrounding society2022In: Perspectives: Policy and Practice in Higher Education, ISSN 1360-3108, Vol. 26, no 1, p. 19-27Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Universities play an important role in the development of society. However, it is not always clear what the objectives of collaboration between a Higher Education Institution (HEI) and external stakeholders from the surrounding society are. In this study, value-focused thinking was applied to construct structures of strategic, fundamental and means objectives of different stakeholders working practically with collaboration between an HEI and the surrounding society. Respondents in three groups of stakeholders from a university and external parties were interviewed. Focus in this study is on general objectives of collaboration between an HEI and the surrounding society. Based on the interviews and feedback, objectives were identified and SSFMO (Structure of Strategic, Fundamental and Means Objectives) was constructed from each respondent’s answer. Generally, the fundamental objectives differed more between the stakeholders than the means objectives did. How SSFMOs could be used in practical collaboration projects is discussed in the paper.

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  • 25.
    Lif, Zophie
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Måttligt mätt?: En undersökning av olika sätt att operationalisera folkhälsa2020Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    This study has examined measurement of public health through the perspective of measurement theory and theory of value. The purpose was to increase the knowledge regarding operationalization of public health. The method of the study was an analysis of three organizations’ way of operationalizing public health – Folkhälsomyndigheten (The Swedish Public Health Authority, FHM), The World Health Organization (WHO), and The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). The result of the study shows that there is a distinct difference between the organizations regarding choice of determining factors and indicators. The study confirms earlier research regarding the difficulties of measuring public health, and visualizes what consequences decisions regarding the execution of the measurements can bring.

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  • 26.
    Lindahl, Johan
    et al.
    Chalmers University of Technology.
    Lingfors, David
    Uppsala University.
    Elmqvist, Åsa Katarina
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Mignon, Ingrid
    Economic analysis of the early market of centralized photovoltaic parks in Sweden2022In: Renewable energy, ISSN 0960-1481, E-ISSN 1879-0682, Vol. 185, p. 1192-1208Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Sweden are one of the countries that experience growing installation volumes of Solar photovoltaic. Traditionally, in Sweden, most of the solar photovoltaic investments and policy incentives have focused on distributed photovoltaic systems. Yet, despite limited policy incentives and pessimistic forecasts, an increasing number of centralized photovoltaic parks have been commissioned and plans for substantial new capacities are communicated. Hence, the current paper investigates why. Detailed information about the underlying costs of six PV parks commissioned in2019 and 2020 in Sweden were obtained by in-depth interviews with stakeholders and were analysed through levelized cost of electricity calculations. We conclude that the unsubsidised levelized cost of electricity ranged from 27.37 to 49.39 €/MWh, with an average of 40.79 €/MWh. This is lower than what are assessed for photovoltaic parks in some recent Swedish electricity system scenario studies. The main reason for the discrepancy is identified to be the assumed interest rates in the system scenario studies and the actual cost of capital experienced in the market. Comparing the levelized cost of electricity values with the market value of solar photovoltaic electricity on the spot market show that four of the six studied parks would be profitable under a merchant business model with the last years spot prices. If the downward price trend continues, Sweden may face an unexpected expansion of photovoltaic parks.

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  • 27.
    Lövh, Niklas
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Analys av oönskade händelser: Felträd och händelseträd som verktyg för att generera hypoteser i underrättelseverksamhet2021Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Intelligence activities aim to forecast the future in various ways and add important knowledge to support decision-makers. In order to be able to come up with knowledge that is useful to the decision-maker, useful hypotheses must initially be set up. This study aims to test a method where fault tree analysis and event tree analysis are used to generate hypotheses. The proposed method is based on Common sense-analysis, a method based on the rational actor model. It works broadly so that the analyst identifies undesirable events to be analyzed. Then you put yourself in the place of the analyzed actor and perform fault- and event tree analyzes based on the unwanted event. From this, weaknesses for the analyzed actor are identified and hypotheses are generated. These hypotheses then go on in the intelligence process and become the subjects that are investigated in more depth. The method is being tested at a fictitious drug organization where four summary hypotheses have been generated with the support of the method. Advantages of the method are that the structured way in which the hypotheses are generated means that the method will be applied similarly by different analysts and that the reasoning can easily be followed and communicated. It is based on the well-established methods of fault- and event tree analysis and takes into account both weaknesses and possible countermeasures from the counterparty being analyzed, thus covering dynamic event developments. A disadvantage of the method is that it is based on the rational actor model, but in this case may be applied to actors who are impulse driven rather than rational, which may complicate the assessments. It can also be stated that the method can both identify critical vulnerabilities and generate important knowledge for one's own organization. However, the method needs to be tested in a live environment in order to be able to determine whether it really works.

  • 28.
    McIntosh, Johanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Aktieinvesterande kvinnor: En studie om hur psykologiska biaser påverkar investeringsbeslut2019Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    There is an economic inequality today between women and men, which is problematic in various ways. Women generally have lower wages and less wealth. In addition, and perhaps partly as a consequence of this, they also invest less in stocks than men. This can be seen as problematic since stock investments is the savings form that generally yields the highest return. This qualitative study is therefore about women and their investments. The study aims to create an understanding of how female investors make their investment decisions. The study’s focus is based on psychological bias, which is an element of Behavioral Economics. Based on previous research which deals with psychological biases in individual Indian investors, this study researches a new target group, Swedish female investors. Ten Swedish female investors have been interviewed and their answers have been analyzed. The results show how several psychological biases have affected their investment decisions in the categories affective influences and emotions, strategies for information management and perceptual organizational principles and psychological motives.

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  • 29.
    Milutinovic, Goran
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Seipel, Stefan
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science. Uppsala universitet.
    Does visual saliency affect decision-making?2021In: Journal of Visualization, ISSN 1343-8875, E-ISSN 1875-8975, Vol. 24, p. 1267-1285Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In the present study, we explore potential effects of visual saliency on decision quality in context of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM). We compare two visualization techniques: parallel coordinates (PC) and scatterplot matrices (SPM). We investigate the impact of saliency facilitated by means of either color or size. The saliency and visualization techniques were factors in our analysis, and effects were evaluated in terms of decision quality, attention, time on task, and confidence. Results show that the quality of choice and attention were comparable for all saliency conditions when SPM was used. For PC, we found a positive effect of color saliency both on the quality of choice and on attention. Different forms of saliency led to varying times on task in both PC and SPM; however, those variations were not significant. A comparison of PC and SPM shows, users spent less time on the task, obtained better decision quality, and were more confident with their decision when using PC. To summarize, our findings suggest that saliency can increase attention and decision quality in MCDM for certain visualization techniques and forms of saliency. Another contribution of this work is the novel suggestion of the method to elicit of users’ preferences; its potential benefits are discussed in the end of the paper.

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  • 30.
    Milutinovic, Goran
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Seipel, Stefan
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science. Division of Visual Information and Interaction, Department of Information Technology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
    Brandt, S. Anders
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Geospatial Sciences.
    The impact of interactive visualization on trade-off-based geospatial decision-making2019In: International Journal of Geographical Information Science, ISSN 1365-8816, E-ISSN 1365-8824, Vol. 33, no 10, p. 2094-2123Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    In a previous work we developed GISwaps, a novel method for geospatial decision-making based on Even Swaps. In this paper, we present the results of an evaluation of a visualization framework integrated with this method, implemented within a decision support system. This evaluation is based on two different studies. In the quantitative study, 15 student participants used GISwaps with no visual features, and 15 participants used GISwaps with the integrated visual framework, as the tool in a solar farm site location case study. The results of the quantitative evaluation show positive impact of the visualization in terms of increased coherency in trade-offs. The results also show a statistically significant difference in average trade-off values between the groups, with users from the non-visual group setting on average 20% higher trade-off values compared with the users in the visual group. In the qualitative study, we had one expert in GIS, two experts in decision-making and two experts in solar energy as a focus user group. Data in this study were obtained by observations and semi-structured interviews with the participants. The impact of the visualization framework was assessed positively by all participants in the expert group. 

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  • 31.
    Milutinovic, Goran
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science.
    Seipel, Stefan
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Computer Science. Uppsala universitet.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Geospatial decision-making framework based on the concept of satisficing2021In: ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, ISSN 2220-9964, Vol. 10, no 5, article id 326Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    Decision-making methods used in geospatial decision-making are often computationally complex prescriptive methods, details of which are rarely transparent to the decision maker. However, having a deep understanding of the details and mechanisms of the applied method is a prerequisite for the efficient use thereof. In this paper, we present a novel decision-making framework that emanates from the need for intuitive and easy-to-use decision support systems for geospatial multi-criteria decision-making. The framework consists of two parts: the decision making model, and the interactive visualization framework. The decision-making model is based on the concept of quasi-satisficing, and as such, it is intuitive and easy to understand and apply. It integrates even swaps, a prescriptive decision-making method, with the findings of behavioural decision-making theories. Providing visual feedback and interaction opportunities throughout the decision-making process, the interactive visualization part of the framework helps the decision maker gain better insight into the decision space and attribute dependencies. Furthermore, it provides the means to analyse and compare the outcomes of different scenarios and decision paths.

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  • 32.
    Odelstad, Jan
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Joining conceptual systems - three remarks on TJS2019In: Filosofiska Notiser, E-ISSN 2002-0198, Vol. 6, no 1, p. 77-131Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    The Theory of Joining Systems, abbreviated TJS, is a general theory of representing for example legal and other normative systems as formal structures. It uses algebraic tools and a fundamental idea in this algebraic approach is the representation of a conditional norm as an ordered pair of concepts. Another fundamental idea is that the components in such a pair are concepts of different sorts. Conditional norms are thus links from for example descriptive to normative concepts and the result is the joining of two conceptual systems. However, there are often at least three kinds of concepts involved in many normative systems, viz. descriptive, normative and intermediate concepts. Intermediate concepts such as `being the owner' and `being a citizen' have descriptive grounds and normative consequences and can be said to be located intermediately between the system of grounds and the system of consequences. Intermediate concepts function as bridges (links, joinings) between concepts of different sorts. The aim of this paper is to further develop TJS and widen the range of application of the theory. It will be shown that the idea of norms as ordered pairs is flexible enough to handle nested implications and hypothetical consequences. Minimal joinings, which are important in TJS, are shown to be closely related to formal concepts in Formal Concept Analysis. TJS was developed for concepts of a special kind, namely conditions. In this paper a new model of TJS is developed, where the concepts are attributes and aspects, and the role of intermediate concepts in this model is discussed.

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  • 33.
    Odelstad, Jan
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Resonemangsmodeller för tillståndsprövning av vindkraft2022Report (Other academic)
    Abstract [sv]

    Den forskning som redovisas i denna rapport har som övergripande utgångspunkt att det beslutsanalytiska språket är en verktygslåda för rationell hantering av beslutsproblem (se avsnitt 2.3.8). I rapporten fokuseras verktygslådans användning på utformning av några teoretiska verktyg med syfte att bl.a. kunna användas vid tillståndsprövning av vindkraft. För Del 1 är temat resonemangsmodeller och deras tillämpning vid beslutsfattande och beslutsanalys. Huvudsakligen behandlas resonemangsmodeller gällande aggregering, framför allt villkorsbaserade modeller. Den abstrakta resonemangsmodellen VBS karakteriseras i Kapitel 2 och den kan ses som ett begreppssystem (ett språk) för att uttrycka villkorsbaserad aggregering. Inom ramen för den formalism som utvecklas kan olika modeller konstrueras. I Kapitel 3 ges några exempel.

    I Del 2 behandlas resonemangsmodellers roll i samband med legala regelsystem och policyer. Begreppet ’policy’ges i denna rapport en vid tolkning. En policy är ett regelsystem som styr beslutsfattande, beteenden och olika former av handlingar. Policyer och resonemangsmodeller hänger samman. En policy kan innehålla en eller flera resonemangsmodeller och en resonemangsmodell kan få status som en policy. En resonemangsmodell kan också i viss mening innehålla en eller flera policyer.

    I Del 1 används här och var fragment av predikatlogik, inte minst i avsnitt 2.2 med syftet att göra framställningen av villkorsbaserad sammanvägning kortare och mer entydig. I Del 2 används predikatlogik på en annan typ av frågeställning, nämligen för att representera vissa typer av rättsliga regler. Predikatlogisk formalisering är en form av representation, nämligen av språkliga utsagor med utsagor i predikatlogiken. Det är inte meningen att fullständigt formalisera de rättsliga reglerna utan användningen av predikatlogiken är informell.

    Två vanliga omständigheter som åberopas vid överklagande av tillstånd för lokalisering av vindkraftverk är störande buller och påverkan på kungsörns-populationen. Genom utredningar, myndigheters ställningstaganden och utslag i olika domstolar har det utvecklats riktlinjer för hur buller resp. kungsörnspåverkan ska bedömas och dessa riktlinjer konstituerar en praxis för bedömningen av dessa aspekter. I avsnitt 1.3.5 diskuteras buller kortfattat och i Del 2 studeras hänsynstagande till kungsörn. I Kapitel 5 skisseras det juridiska regelverket för skydd av kungsörnar vid lokalisering av vindkraftverk. Om det finns något man skulle kunna kalla en "kungsörnspolicy" för tillståndsbeslut gällande vindkraftslokalisering och vad den i så fall kan tänkas innehålla diskuteras i Kapitel 6. Det är viktigt att notera att störande buller och påverkan på kungsörnspopulationen är här enbart tillämpningsexempel för att antyda hur vissa teoretiska verktyg skulle kunna användas praktiskt och konkret och utgör inte någon detaljerad analys av dessa aspekter.

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  • 34. Roitto, M.
    et al.
    Ahonen-Jonnarth, Ulla
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Lamppu, J.
    Huttunen, S.
    Apoplastic and total peroxidase activities in Scots pine needles at subarctic polluted sites1999In: European journal of forest pathology, ISSN 0300-1237, Vol. 29, p. 399-410Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    A gradient survey was carried out in order to compare peroxidase activity in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) needles in relation to distance from the industrial centre of Monchegorsk, on the Kola Peninsula in north-western Russia. Apoplastic and total peroxidase activity and sulphur (S), nickel (Ni) and copper (Cu) content in the needles of mature trees were measured on seven plots located between 10 and 110 km from the pollution source. Peroxidase activities in both current- and previous-year needles increased towards the smelters and showed a positive correlation with needle S, Cu and Ni concentrations. Total peroxidase activities showed a more obvious relationship to the pollution gradient in winter than in autumn. The element contents in the current year needles averaged 1649 ppm (S), 128 ppm (Ni) and 118 ppm (Cu) close to the smelters, 1212 ppm (S), 37 ppm (Ni) and 67 ppm (Cu) at adistance of 40 km and 831 ppm (S), 7 ppm (Ni) and 1 ppm (Cu) at the most distant sampling plot. This study showed that both the apoplastic and total peroxidase activities responded to heavy metal and sulphur pollution up to 40 km from the smelters in winter, which indicated an increased oxidative stress in this area. The harsh climate conditions and the high pollution levels may have had additive effects. However, as peroxidases are considered a general indicator of stress, it is not possible to evaluate the extent to which single pollutants contribute to this enzyme activity.

  • 35.
    Taha, Sana
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Bedömning och beslutsfattande under tidspress på apotek2021Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    There are several different types of stressors that can interfere with the performance of a decision maker. In pharmacies, increased time pressure is seen in the workplace and understanding how this stressor can affect assessment and decision-making is important to care for the health of pharmacists and ensure safe patient advice. Previously published studies on how time pressure affects physicians' assessment and decision-making have shown a relation between increased time pressure and poorer clinical decision-making. An experimental study with the aim to clarify how assessment and decision-making in pharmacists is affected by time pressure was carried out. The inspiration for this study was derived from previously published studies in physicians. A randomized web-based study with five clinical questions, two of which were about self-care and three about prescriptions, was sent out to professional pharmacists in pharmacies around Sweden. A total of 17 participants completed the survey with ten participants (n=10) in the time limit condition and seven participants (n=7) in the condition without a time limit. Participants were also asked about perceived stress during the survey and the confidence in their answers. The data of the response time, the accuracy of clinical responses, perceived stress in the study and self-confidence regarding correct responses were analyzed. The results show that participants in the time limit condition responded almost four times faster than the group without a time limit (M=287 and M=1072 seconds). This indicates that the manipulation of inducing time pressure in the time-limited group was successful. The analysis of the accuracy of clinical responses between the two groups did not show a statistically significant difference, but there is a tendency for higher scores and thus better results on the responses for the group without a time limit. The question of self-confidence in the answers showed no difference between the groups. The issue of perceived stress resulted in a statistically significant difference between the groups with a time limit and without a time limit (M=69 and M=38 on a scale of 0-100). This shows that the participants in the time limit group felt more stressed than the group without a time limit and that time pressure thus increased the perceived stress of the participants. Although the number of participants in the study was limited and no statistically significant relationship was found between time pressure and clinical decision-making, the results show that the manipulation with time limitation worked and that the difficulty level of the five clinical questions appeared to be well adapted to the experiment, which can be used for designing future similar studies.

     

  • 36.
    Tapper, Rebecca
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Etisk bedömning under risk: En kvantitativ studie kring gruppers och individers bedömning av ett etiskt hjälpdilemma2022Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    Ethical decision-making can come with several difficulties that include contradictory goals around maximizing efficiency or maximizing fairness. This quantitative survey study aimed to investigate whether an ethical judgement under risk differed between groups and individuals regarding a specific ethical aid-dilemma. The structure of the study was made around a fictitious aid-dilemma in which two patients required medical aid. The study consisted of two parts with two similar aid-dilemmas, where age was the main difference (children vs. adults). The first part compared groups and individuals’ ethical judgement under risk. Part two compared individuals’ ethical assessment under risk depending on the age of pediatric patients. First off, the participants of this study needed to prioritize which patient should receive medical aid first. In a follow-up question, a risk factor was added, in the form of that one of the patients (the highest priority) was given a low probability of having a successful surgery. The participants then needed to assess the likelihood of a successfuloperation on the second patient in order to prioritize them over the first patient. A total of 99 students (18-19 years old), from five different classes in year three (from the economics program at a college in Western Sweden), participated in this study. The results showed a non-significant difference between the ethical judgement under risk between individual decision-makers and group decision-makers. Neither could a difference between the ethical judgement depending on the patient's age (regarding assessment between two children) be seen, however, as predicted there was a clear ethical basic principle regarding patients age (children vs. adults) where the majority of participants would choose to help the child before the adult. 

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  • 37.
    Threadgold, Emma
    et al.
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, United Kingdom.
    Marsh, John E.
    University of Central Lancashire, Preston, United Kingdom; Luleå University of Technology.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Nelson, Megan
    Lancaster University, Lancaster, United Kingdom.
    Ball, Linden J.
    Biased Estimates of Environmental Impact in the Negative Footprint Illusion: The Nature of Individual Variation2022In: Frontiers in Psychology, E-ISSN 1664-1078, Vol. 12, article id 648328Article in journal (Refereed)
    Abstract [en]

    People consistently act in ways that harm the environment, even when believing their actions are environmentally friendly. A case in point is a biased judgment termed the negative footprint illusion, which arises when people believe that the addition of “eco-friendly” items (e.g., environmentally certified houses) to conventional items (e.g., standard houses), reduces the total carbon footprint of the whole item-set, whereas the carbon footprint is, in fact, increased because eco-friendly items still contribute to the overall carbon footprint. Previous research suggests this illusion is the manifestation of an “averaging-bias.” We present two studies that explore whether people’s susceptibility to the negative footprint illusion is associated with individual differences in: (i) environment-specific reasoning dispositions measured in terms of compensatory green beliefs and environmental concerns; or (ii) general analytic reasoning dispositions measured in terms of actively open-minded thinking, avoidance of impulsivity and reflective reasoning (indexed using the Cognitive Reflection Test; CRT). A negative footprint illusion was demonstrated when participants rated the carbon footprint of conventional buildings combined with eco-friendly buildings (Study 1 and 2) and conventional cars combined with eco-friendly cars (Study 2). However, the illusion was not identified in participants’ ratings of the carbon footprint of apples (Study 1 and 2). In Studies 1 and 2, environment-specific dispositions were found to be unrelated to the negative footprint illusion. Regarding reflective thinking dispositions, reduced susceptibility to the negative footprint illusion was only associated with actively open-minded thinking measured on a 7-item scale (Study 1) and 17-item scale (Study 2). Our findings provide partial support for the existence of a negative footprint illusion and reveal a role of individual variation in reflective reasoning dispositions in accounting for a limited element of differential susceptibility to this illusion.

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  • 38.
    Wallhagen, Marita
    et al.
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Sörqvist, Patrik
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Holmgren, Mattias
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Building Engineering, Energy Systems and Sustainability Science, Environmental Science.
    Andersson, Hanna
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Brister i vårt logiska tänkande ett hinder för klimatkloka beslut2019In: Husbyggaren, ISSN 0018-7968, no 1, p. 23-25Article in journal (Other (popular science, discussion, etc.))
  • 39.
    Åberg, Björn
    University of Gävle, Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development, Department of Computer and Geospatial Sciences, Decision, Risk and Policy Analysis.
    Risks and risk management in construction projects: A product life cycle approach2023Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
    Abstract [en]

    The construction industry often operates with important and expensive projects that should meet deadlines and various regulations and at the same time avoid risks associated with the phases of the construction projects. This thesis reviews risks by a project life cycle (PLC) and the risk management used in construction projects by interviewing different construction project stakeholders such as hotel owners in Belgium and construction specialists. Hence, this study aims to find what the different risks are in the different phases of the construction projects life cycles and how risks are managed in these construction projects. The project life cycle framework developed especially for construction projects and used in this study consists of the conceptualization phase, the planning and design phase, the contractor selection phase, the contractor mobilization phase, the operational phase, and finally the project closeout and termination phase. The results of this study indicate that there are many risks existing in the construction projects that were part of this study. During the planning phase of construction projects, some of the identified risks were communication-related risks, design risks, estimation risks, budgeting risks, financial risks, site conditions and unknown geological condition risks, socio-political risks, government relation risks, and economic risks. During the contractor selection phase, the main risks that were identified were owners appointing the wrong contractor responsible for the construction of the building. During the operational phase of the PLC, some of the risks existing were communication-related risks, risks of late deliveries of materials, risks of a shortage of materials, risks of poor quality of workmanship, cost related risks, site safety risks, risks of disagreements in the teams, delays risks, risks of unavailability of funds and financial failure, risks of inadequate managerial skills, risks of improper coordination between teams, risks of insufficiently skilled staff or subcontractors, weather, and seasonal implications risks, site conditions and unknown geological condition risks, theft risks, subcontractors don’t deliver materials in time and subcontractors bankruptcy. During the project closeout and termination phase, some of the risks were cost related risks, risks that the project end is delayed, quality concerns risks, and risks of scope and design changes. Further, this study shows that the owner/client of construction projects tend to mitigate different risks of the construction projects by transferring these risks to outside parties such as the contractors. Another finding from this study is that non-computerized risk management tools were preferred instead of tools that use computerised software. Examples of such non-computerized tools were risk matrices, brainstorming, use of past experiences of construction projects, expert interviews, divide and conquer method, and own judgement.

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