Management of assessments and decision making: execution, facilitation, evaluation

Mikko V. Pohjola, Nordem Oy (THL)

Basic problem

• Lankinen, et al.: State research institutes and research funding: proposal on a comprehensive reform:

– “Preparation, decision-making and implementation of policy should be based on researched information and evidence.…the use of research-based information in social policy decision-making, must be strengthened”

• If we want policy to be ”knowledge-based” and ”effective”…• …what constitutes effective knowledge-based policy?• and effective knowledge support to policy making?

Common perspectives to effectiveness

•Assessment (and modeling)•Quality assurance / control•Uncertainty analysis•Technical assessment of models•”Effectiveness”•Other

PolicyOutcomes (vs. objectives)

Behavioral responses + CBA

Monitoring

Ex ante – ex post evaluation

Factors limiting implementation

Process UseOutput

Constraints

Outcomes

Context

Modelling/assessment

Enablers

Concepts

• Assessment – knowledge support for practical needs

• Policy – decisions and actions with societal relevance

• Outcomes – changes in the world resulting from decision and actions

• Practices – (common) ways of dealing with things

• Effectiveness – capability (or likelihood) of achieving intended outcomes

• Evaluation – analysis of the capability (or likelihood) of achieving intended outcomes

Framework for knowledge-based policy

Policy makingAssessment OutcomesImplementation

(Knowledge) practices

Evaluation &management

• Design• Execution• Follow-up

•Process•Product•Use•Interaction

Question

Answer

Interpretation

Framework for knowledge-based policy

• Focus on knowledge support to decision making– Decision makers' needs?– Societal needs?– Other needs?– Expert knowledge– Local knowledge– Opinions, views, perspectives, values– → collaborative search for questions and answers– → good decisions, desired changes in the world

• Evaluation and management of effectiveness -> proactive guidance of decisions and actions both now and in the future

Management of assessments and decision making

Execution Evaluation

Assessment Decision Outcomes Assessment Decision Outcomes

Question

Answer

Interpretation

•Open assessment

•Openness

•Discussion

•Collaboration

•Shared understanding

•Information structure

•…

•Properties of good assessment

•Dimensions of openness

•Assessment-policy interaction

•Explicit purposes, aims

•…

•Monitoring

•Policy analysis

•…

•Explicit purposes, aims

•Common practices

•…

Fac

ilita

tion

Evaluation of decision support• Five ”knowledge-based” approaches to

effectiveness (cf. the Puijo-case):• Dimensions of openness (DO) (Pohjola and Tuomisto 2011)

• Knowledge-policy interaction (KPI) (Pohjola manuscript)

• Properties of good assessment (PoGA) (Sandström et al. manuscript, http://en.opasnet.org/w/Properties_of_good_assessment)

• Assessment effectiveness (Kauppinen et al. 2006)

• Relational evaluation approach (Koivisto and Pohjola 2011)

• Evaluation guides (the management of) execution!

Evaluation

• Evaluation is possible only in relation to purpose!

• Taking account of (intended) use is essential

• Instrumental value of assessment• Cf. absolute value (a common science view)• Cf. Ad hoc solutions (a common practice view)• => Assessment is a tool for policy-support (a means

to an end)• => A model is a tool for making assessments

Evaluation

• Why evaluation of decisions / decision support?• Efficient use of resources?• Value of work done?• Importance/meaning of information?• Implications of information?• Actual impacts of information?• …• …because funder, customer, user, boss, peer,

stakeholder etc. wants/needs to know!

Evaluation

• Dual purpose of assessments:– Meeting the needs of use (decision making, policy)– Striving for truth (science)

• Assessment is business of creating understanding about reality – Making right questions– Providing good answers– Delivering the answers (and questions) to use

DO: how well can a decision process (or assessment) accept contributions?

• Scope of participation: who are allowed to participate in the process?

• Access to information: what information regarding the issue at hand is made available to participants

• Timing of openness: when are participants invited or allowed to participate?

• Scope of contribution: which aspects of the issue at hand participants are invited or allowed to contribute to?

• Impact of contribution: to what extent are participant contributions allowed to have influence on the outcomes, i.e. how much weight is given to participant contributions?

KPI: how well does assessment address decision needs?

• Impacts• Causes• Problem owner• Target• Interaction

PoGA: how well can an assessment influence decisions and actions?

• Quality of content– Informativeness– Calibration– Coherence

• Applicability– Relevance– Availability– Usability– Acceptability

• Efficiency– Intra-assessment efficiency– Inter-assessment efficiencý

Properties of good assessment

Example: what makes a good hammer?

Example: what makes a good hammer?

• How is the hammer made? By who?

• What properties does the hammer have?

• What do you want to do with the hammer?

• How does the hammer help you do it?

Summary: evaluating decision support

• Purpose:• Identify and explicate decision maker aims & decision

criteria• Identify and explicate other relevant needs

• Decision process:• DO: Capacity of making use of assessments

• Decision support:• PoGA & KPI: Capacity of serving decision needs• DO: Capacity of making use of available knowledge

Homework 9

• Look into two (other than your own) homework 3 draft assessments

• Characterize the assessment drafts according to• Knowledge-policy interaction &• Dimensions of openness

• Based on the characterization, evaluate the assessment drafts according to• Properties of good assessment (modified)

• Write your development suggestions to the corresponding user pages

• Homework 3 deadline is Monday 4.2. !