A Critical Assessment of Quantitative Methodology as a Policy Analysis Tool
ResearchPublished 1974
Presents a critical assessment of the role of quantitative tools and methods in the analysis of public policy issues. The paper focuses on the limitations of quantitative methodology as a tool for the analysis of soft and "squishy" problems and on the distortions that result when those limitations are neglected. This assessment is followed by a preliminary attempt to outline a theory of judgmental analysis intended to explore the difficulties more fully and suggest directions for their resolution. The examples used as illustrations are drawn largely from military and defense applications; however, the issues addressed arise equally strongly in the analysis on nondefense problems, and the assessment presented in this paper is intended to apply to both.
Document Details
- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Available
- Year: 1974
- Print Format: Paperback
- Paperback Pages: 120
- Paperback Price: $35.00
- Document Number: P-5282
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Strauch, Ralph E., A Critical Assessment of Quantitative Methodology as a Policy Analysis Tool, RAND Corporation, P-5282, 1974. As of September 20, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P5282.html
Strauch, Ralph E., A Critical Assessment of Quantitative Methodology as a Policy Analysis Tool. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1974. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P5282.html. Also available in print form.
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