DOI: 10.5061/dryad.9nq5c8d
title: Data from: General rules for environmental management to prioritise social-ecological systems research based on a value of information approach

description: 1. Globally, billions of dollars are invested each year to help understand
 the dynamics of social-ecological systems (SES) in bettering both social
 and environmental outcomes. However, there is no scientific consensus on
 which aspect of an SES is most important and urgent to understand;
 particularly given the realities of limited time and money. 2. Here we use
 a simulation-based “value of information” approach to examine where
 research will deliver the most important information for environmental
 management in four social-ecological systems representing a range of
 real-life environmental issues. 3. We find that neither social nor
 ecological information is consistently the most important: instead,
 researchers should focus on understanding the primary effects of their
 management actions. 4. Thus, when managers are undertaking social actions
 the highest research priority should be understanding the dynamics of
 social groups. Alternatively, when manipulating ecological systems it will
 be most important to quantify ecological population dynamics. 5. Synthesis
 and applications. Our results provide a standard assessment to determine
 the uncertain SES component with the highest expected impact for
 management outcomes. First, managers should determine the structure of
 their SES by identifying social and ecological nodes. Second, managers
 should identify the qualitative nature of the network, by determining
 which nodes are linked, but not the strength of those interactions.
 Finally, managers should identify the actions available to them to
 intervene in the SES. From these steps, managers will be able to identify
 the SES components that are closest to the management action(s), and it is
 these nodes and interactions that should receive priority research
 attention to achieve effective environmental decision making.
description: 1_Code_VOIMatlab code to replicate analysis from article: "General rules for environmental management to prioritise social-ecological systems research based on a value of information approach." 1_Code_VOI generates a series of MATLAB Data files, which are aggregated in 2_Code_EVPXI to calculate EVPXI for each system. 2_Code_EVPXI generates 4 csv files which are combined to reproduce Figure 4 from the manuscript in 3_Code_Figure.2_Code_EVPXIMatlab code to replicate analysis from article: "General rules for environmental management to prioritise social-ecological systems research based on a value of information approach." 1_Code_VOI generates a series of MATLAB Data files, which are aggregated in 2_Code_EVPXI to calculate EVPXI for each system. 2_Code_EVPXI generates 4 csv files which are combined to reproduce Figure 4 from the manuscript in 3_Code_Figure.3_Code_FigureR code to replicate analysis from article: "General rules for environmental management to prioritise social-ecological systems research based on a value of information approach." 1_Code_VOI generates a series of MATLAB Data files, which are aggregated in 2_Code_EVPXI to calculate EVPXI for each system. 2_Code_EVPXI generates 4 csv files which are combined to reproduce Figure 4 from the manuscript in 3_Code_Figure.