ABSTRACT

A key issue in naturalistic decision making (NDM) is to study experienced decision makers for the reason that "only those who know something about the domain would usually be making high-stakes choices" (Klein, 1999, p. 4). NDM researchers study preferably how experts make decisions, but given the difficulties in identifying persons who may be considered as expert de­ cision makers (cf. Shanteau, Weiss, Thomas, & Pounds, 2002), it is sufficient to study experienced or proficient decision makers (cf. Lipshitz, Klein, Orasanu, & Salas, 2001). A proficient decision maker is someone who has acquired relevant experience or knowledge through extensive practice within a certain domain.