The objective of this project was to determine what inputs were being used in decision making in the Division of Wildlife Refuges, Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife. The problem of identifying information items or inputs for a management information system is not unique to this agency. All resource management agencies must identify input types and specific input items before the agency can develop or use a management information system. A sample list of decisions was identified from publications and reports. A classification system was developed and the decisions were categorized. A method of collecting inputs for decision-making is described that is considered more efficient than the "collect everything" approach. Inputs used to make the decisions showed considerable overlap of use from decision to decision. An objective and analytical approach using a decision matrix was used to determine the relative value of inputs. The relative value of inputs was found to bEl related to many factors. The study of three factors was reported: the frequency of use of an input, the tendency of input use to clump, and the overlap of use as related to the complexity of decisions.
