The premise of this book is that most activity in everyday life and work is based on tasks that are novel, infrequent in our experience, or variable with respect to the action to be taken. Such tasks require decisions to be made and actions taken in the face of ambiguous or incomplete information. Time pressure is frequently great and penalties for failure are severe. Examples include investing in markets, controlling industrial accidents, and detecting fraud. The environments in which such tasks occur defy a definition of optimal performance, yet the benefits of successful decision making are considerable. The authors refer to domains without criteria for optimal performance as competency-based and describe the able behaviour of individuals who work in them by the term competence. The chapters examine the propositions that metacognitive processes give structure to otherwise ill-structured tasks and are fundamental enablers of decision-making performance.

This book opens up new directions in judgment and decision making research. Our society and academic research have largely neglected the fact that sound judgment and decision making are the crux of many professions. This volume explores metacognitive processes as an enabler of competence at decision making. Offering a new analysis of competence, by understanding and communicating what professional decision makers do, this book provides valuable contributions to the judgement/decision making field as well as the professional community at large.