AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OF Sally L. Duncan for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Sciences presented on November 17. 2004. Title: Technology and Meaning in Natural Resource Management: The Story- Making Role of GIS in the CLAMS Project Abstract approved: / Redacted for privacy Denise H. Lach The working hypothesis for this study is that the introduction of GIS technology into the ancient procedures of map-making has changed the map-making context sufficiently to require a revision of the way we think about, learn from, and use maps, specifically in the public involvement process in natural resource management. The assumption that we jointly know what maps mean, and how to use them, has been carried unchallenged into the vastly changed arena of digital, information-dense, and highly technical map-making, courtesy of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). It has remained unchallenged even as the social context for environmental policy-making is undergoing historic upheaval. GIS fundamentally changes how information is viewed, literally, by many different groups, for its maps and databases contain varying levels of uncertainty, multiple embedded assumptions, potentially privileged knowledge, and considerable power as story-makers, along with unintended and unexplored social consequences. GIS maps/databases are used here as the central refractor of ideas about relationships between scientists and lay audiences; between the post-modern understanding of privilege and social change; and ultimately between technology and meaning, where changing expectations about the role of science in natural resource management resonate most profoundly. Key research questions are: (1) How can GIS maps contribute to mutual learning in the natural resource management arena?, and (2) Which consequences of GIS development could change approaches to natural resource management? The exploratory case study used to address these questions examines GIS maps from the Coastal Landscape Analysis and Modeling Study (CLAMS), a landscape-scale bioregional assessment in western Oregon that draws heavily on GIS technology to illustrate ecological and socioeconomic dynamics and interactions. Findings suggest that use of GIS through time may change the realm of designing and structuring decision problems, adjusting it from a largely science-driven exercise in natural resource management to a more collaborative story-making one. While epistemological differences between scientists and lay audiences remain, they can be offset through such collaboration, with concomitant shifts in power structures that could affect a range of conditions including rates of technology diffusion, and management of a broad transition in how natural resources are perceived and utilized. © Copyright by Sally L. Duncan November 17, 2004 All Rights Reserved Technology and Meaning in Natural Resource Management: The Story-making Role of GIS in the CLAMS Project by Sally L. Duncan A DISSERTATION submitted to Oregon State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Presented November 17, 2004 Commencement June 2005 Doctor of Philosophy dissertation of Sally L. Duncan presented on November 17, 2004. APP VED: Redacted for privacy Major Professor, representing Environmental Sciences Redacted for privacy Director of the Environmental Sciences Program Redacted for privacy Dean of thQ' Gr'àdu'ate School I understand that my dissertation will become part of the permanent collection of Oregon State University libraries. My signature below authorizes release of my dissertation to any reader upon request. Redacted for privacy Sally L. lncan, Author ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My sincere thanks go first to my major advisor, Denise Lach, whose constantly inquiring mind has guided me throughout this undertaking, and helped me realize that there's always one more really good question. My committee members (John Bliss of Forest Resources, Gordon Grant of the PNW Research Station, Dawn Wright of Geosciences, and Marta Tones of Oceanography) have been encouraging and supportive throughout, and, believe it or not, have made the experience of taking preliminary exams and the writing of a dissertation seem like more fun than work. Tom Spies and Norm Johnson, co-principal investigators on the CLAMS project, are to be commended for supporting my graduate studies in social science, even when they were swamped with the natural science challenges alone, and perhaps tired of my rants about public involvement. I have had all kinds of help from people along the way, and some deserve special mention: Fred Swanson suggested Denise Lach as an advisor, bless him, and mentored on demand; Jim Sedell usefully goaded me; Jonathan Thompson resolved my technical problems, drank green drinks with me, and upheld his belief in statistics at all times; Bob, Ross, and Moya Duncan cheered me on from the sidelines; Clyth Hoult was a remote muse; and the rest of my extended family inquired solicitously about progress on approximately an annual basis. My parents, Patricia Jane and Walter Lind Taylor, have inspired me all my life, and were with me in this endeavor as in all others. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .1 OfMeaning and Maps......................................................................................................2 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.........................................................................6 Introduction......................................................................................................................6 Considering Theoretical Frameworks..............................................................................7 Revolutions in Science and Environmental Thought.....................................................10 Logical Positivism and the Quest for Truth...................................................................15 Images of Science and Scientists...................................................................................19 Unfolding Scientific Controversy..................................................................................22 Changing Acceptance of Science Findings....................................................................24 Cultural and Institutional Barriers..................................................................................25 Acrossthe Language Barrier..........................................................................................28 How do we Process Information7..................................................................................31 Acrossthe Larger Landscape.........................................................................................34 WhoseTruth Prevails7...................................................................................................39 GIS as Communication Device: Peril and Promise.......................................................42 Teclmologyon the Move...............................................................................................46 Mapmaker, Mapmaker, Make me a Map.......................................................................49 Natural Resource Decisions at a Crossroads7................................................................53 TheRest of the Story......................................................................................................55 CHAPTER3: METHODOLOGY.................................................................................57 RESEARCHDESIGN...................................................................................................57 Qualitative versus Quantitative......................................................................59 Casestudies....................................................................................................61 Surveys...........................................................................................................64 MentalMapping.............................................................................................66 FocusGroups..................................................................................................69 ContentAnalysis............................................................................................71 Research Design Steps ................................................................................... 73 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) 1. Web-site Survey .73 2. 2002 Workshop......................................................................................75 3. Mental Mapping.....................................................................................76 4. Focus Groups.......................................................................................... 5. Pre-test, Post-test, with Control..............................................................80 CHAPTER4: RESULTS...............................................................................................83 I. WEB-SITE SURVEY.................................................................................................83 II. 2002 WORKSHOP....................................................................................................89 Confidence Levels: questions of validation and reality.................................91 Tool of Inquiry: the science............................................................................93 Decision-making: the potential policy tools...................................................95 Public Education: the spread