Shedding light on the usability of ecosystem services–based decision support systems: An eye-tracking study linked to the cognitive probing approach

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThe requirements for communicating ecosystem services (ES) information often are not considered in operationalizing ES concepts. In particular, the heterogeneous uses of ES require different functionalities and qualities for the information provided, which must be considered when processing ES data into different types of information. The relevant factors that influence the usability of ES information include the users' knowledge and cognitive ability as well as case study-specific factors. This missing knowledge can affect the transformation of the ES concept into practice, thus preventing the use of ES for further development or for transformation to sustainable management. Providing information that is relevant and useful for decision-making thus depends on understanding potential users' demands and their cognitive processes involving the information in making decisions.In this contribution, we present the evaluation of specific design features of a prototype ES decision support system assessed in an eye-tracking experiment. The study was conducted with more than 100 participants who were split into two groups. The participants in both groups had a background in spatial planning but differed in their connection to the case study region. The tool presented various GIS-based modeled land-use scenarios driven by a new spatial planning policy recently adopted in Switzerland that lead to various impacts on ES in the region. The ES information was shown with additional land-use indicators as well as information about the landscape aesthetic in landscape visualizations. The results show that there were significant differences between the participants in the way they perceived, interpreted and used the information for ES-based decision-making tasks. We also identified critical key factors defining the types of representation of the information that influence perception and cognitive processes.In summary, the results of the study provide design recommendations for representing ES information based on the intended use and identify critical representation features that could potentially influence the perception of ES information.

Eye-Tracking in Immersive Virtual Reality for Education: A Review of the Current Progress and Applications

“…Variety of studies reported the use of eye tracking in design, for example in graphic design and other computer-based visual evaluation methods, which are used to measure the distribution of visual attention (Poole and Ball, 2005;Hollander et al, 2019). In a study from 2016, eye-tracking was used to assess computer-based visual tools, which help decision-making to investigate ecosystem services (Klein et al, 2016). It has been suggested that the ability of users to understand ecosystem services can be improved through the use of such decision support systems.…”

Participatory identification and selection of ecosystem services: building on field experiences

“…In our CSs, as in many others (Lewan and Söderqvist 2002, Baker et al 2013, MacDonald et al 2014, Mascarenhas et al 2016, various levels of understanding of the concept and of ecosystem https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol23/iss2/art27/ functioning were reported. In fact, the understanding of the concept depends on how it is introduced (Klein et al 2016). It is well known that methods can influence outcomes of participatory exercises (Kenter et al 2011, Malinga et al 2013, Raymond et al 2014.…”

Potential of eye-tracking simulation software for analyzing landscape preferences

“…In contrast, the valley bottoms are mostly affected by the intensification of agricultural use as well as the expansion of settlements and infrastructure [ 14 , 15 ], increasing the share of less preferred artificial features and landscape types [ 16 – 18 ], which also induces a decline in aesthetic landscape values [ 11 , 14 ]. As such developments are ongoing due to legacy effects [ 19 , 20 ] and expected future demand for ecosystem services [ 14 ], profound knowledge about landscape preferences is of high importance to support decision-making in developing effective strategies for maintaining preferred visual landscape characteristics and fostering positive benefits for human well-being [ 11 , 21 ].…”

“…Other studies focused on the beauty of natural environments, e.g., forests [ 38 , 45 – 47 ], underwater reefs [ 48 ] or lakescapes [ 49 ] as well as visual preferences in urban environments and urban green spaces, e.g., [ 33 , 50 – 55 ]. Eye-tracking experiments can also support the understanding individual’s perceptions and cognitive processes for decision-making related to landscape and ecosystem service planning as shown for mountain landscapes [ 21 ] and forest landscapes [ 47 ]. In summary, eye-tracking is a well-situated approach in context with landscape perception without the language filter [ 55 ].…”