Abstract
Environmental governance systems are under greater pressure to adapt and to cope with increased social and ecological uncertainty from stressors like climate change. We review principles of social cognition and decision making that shape and constrain how environmental governance systems adapt. We focus primarily on the interplay between key decision makers in society and legal systems. We argue that adaptive governance must overcome three cooperative dilemmas to facilitate adaptation: (1) encouraging collaborative problem solving, (2) garnering social acceptance and commitment, and (3) cultivating a culture of trust and tolerance for change and uncertainty. However, to do so governance systems must cope with biases in people's decision making that cloud their judgment and create conflict. These systems must also satisfy people's fundamental needs for self-determination, fairness, and security, ensuring that changes to environmental governance are perceived as legitimate, trustworthy, and acceptable. We discuss the implications of these principles for common governance solutions (e.g., public participation, enforcement) and conclude with methodological recommendations. We outline how scholars can investigate the social cognitive principles involved in cases of adaptive governance.
Highlights
Environmental governance systems establish a framework for societal cooperation and stewardship of Earth’s vital ecosystems
We review principles of social cognition and decision making that shape and constrain how environmental governance systems adapt
We review aspects of social cognition and decision making, which may constrain society’s capacity for cooperation and change, and strongly influence adaptive governance
Summary
Environmental governance systems establish a framework for societal cooperation and stewardship of Earth’s vital ecosystems. The idea of a complex cooperative dilemma captures the fundamental social-psychological problem society faces when dealing with major societal issues like climate change adaptation. This theoretical lens reveals relevant psychological processes involved in society’s struggle for adaptive environmental governance. Three cooperative challenges Adaptive environmental governance poses at least three cooperative challenges that need to be addressed in legal and institutional design: (1) encouraging collaborative problem solving despite inherent conflict, (2) garnering social acceptance and commitment, and (3) cultivating a culture of tolerance for change and uncertainty, while improving legitimacy and helping to secure society through law and order. Restorative justice components of regulatory systems like education, open dialogue, justification, and graduated sanctions, which increase with the severity of the violation, may help empower communities
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