Wellbeing, values, and planning in environmental management

Area of Science:

• Environmental Planning
• Decision Science
• Social Science

Background:

• Human values and wellbeing are crucial in environmental planning, but definitions remain theoretical and debated.
• Existing controversies hinder effective group deliberations in expert and participatory processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop task-specific, mid-level theories and models for human values and wellbeing.
• To clarify the relationships among values, desires, and personality.
• To provide practical definitions for group deliberations and decision support tools.

Main Methods:

• Utilized purpose-built value sets and conceptual models.
• Focused on task-specific definitions rather than broad theoretical constructs.
• Developed an evaluative statement definition for wellbeing to assess trade-offs.

Main Results:

• Established clear distinctions between values, desires, and personality traits.
• Created models explaining the interplay between values and wellbeing.
• Provided a framework for integrating these concepts into structured decision-making processes.

Conclusions:

• Task-specific models offer a productive approach to resolving theoretical debates on values and wellbeing.
• The derived concepts enhance group deliberations and decision support in environmental planning.
• Findings contribute to ongoing discussions on nature's intrinsic value and pluralism versus monism in environmental ethics.