Decision–Making Workshop IV ‘The Role of Language in Decision-Making Processes’
Thursday, 20th September 2007: 10.00am to 5.30pm (Registration: 9.30 to 10.00am)
Room G108, 1st Floor, London School of Economics, 20 Kingsway (entrance in Portugal Street), London WC2
This fourth workshop looked at decision-making from the perspective of language and cognition, especially its role in shaping our awareness, possibilities and choices. We looked in some detail at the how our everyday language and mental processes are embodied and expressive of our subjective experience. Time and space was provided for the participants to experience and experiment with the concepts presented in ways to improve their own decision-making processes. Charles Faulkner introduced the key concepts of Cognitive Linguistics and showed how they account for and elaborate on significant aspects of Prospect Theory in Behavioral Finance, Sense Making, Mental Models and Naturalistic Decision-making leading to an ordinary language-based cross-disciplinary model of thinking and decision-making. Key concepts include:
- Mind and language are embodied & situated – subject to the limits of local knowledge (availability bias) and to our embodied biases for “more,” “forward,” “bigger,” and “faster.”
- Meaning is made with Schemas, Semantic Frames & Prototypes – these gestalts highlight and hide aspects of our experience such that we respond to typicality, conventional representations and “family resemblance” more than the details of a situation.
- Natural Decision-making is pre-framed and Recognition Primed – most decision-making research overestimates the importance of outcomes and options (and automated decision support) while underestimating learning cues, scenarios and the experience curve.
- How the concepts of Scope & Category can help explain the dynamic between our internal experience and the world around us. How they form mental heterarchies that we are not always aware of, but have important implications for modeling and change.
In the experiential learning tradition, we practiced what is presented with a series of exercises designed to increase awareness of how our own language impacts our decision making processes. The day closed with a discussion of the implications of the topics presented and proposed directions for further research.
Eve Mitleton-Kelly's and Charles Faulkner's presentations and a list of participants are attached below.
The event was videoed and a DVD is now available @ £10.00 for SOL-UK members, £15.00 for other SoL members and £25.00 for non members - please contact Ann Ward annward@sol-uk.org for further details.
