scholarly journals Communicating evidence for policy makers in icons and tables- What works? preprint

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cameron Brick ◽  
Alexandra Lee Jessica Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Decision Makers ◽  
Policy Options ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Graphical Displays ◽  
What Works ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Evidence Quality ◽  
Color Cues ◽  
Evidence For Policy

Policy decisions have vast consequences, but there is little empirical research on how best to communicate underlying evidence to decision makers. Groups in diverse fields (e.g., education, medicine, crime) use brief, graphical displays to list policy options, expected outcomes, and evidence quality, to make such evidence easy to assess. However, the understanding of these representations is rarely studied. We surveyed experts and non-experts on what information they want and tested their objective comprehension of commonly used graphics. 252 UK residents from Prolific and 452 UK What Works Centre users interpreted the meaning of graphics shown without labels. Comprehension was low (often below 50 per cent). The best-performing graphics combined unambiguous metaphorical shapes with color cues and indications of quantity. The participants also reported what types of evidence they wanted and in what detail (e.g., subgroups; different outcomes). Users particularly wanted to see intervention effectiveness and quality, and policy makers also wanted to know the financial costs and negative consequences. Comprehension and preferences were remarkably consistent between the two samples. Groups communicating evidence about policy options can use these results to design summaries, toolkits, and reports for expert and non-expert audiences.

scholarly journals Communicating evidence in icons and summary formats for policymakers: what works?

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Cameron Brick ◽  
Alexandra L.J. Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Decision Makers ◽  
Policy Options ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Graphical Displays ◽  
What Works ◽  
Financial Costs ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Evidence Quality ◽  
Color Cues ◽  
Expected Outcomes

Abstract Policy decisions have vast consequences, but there is little empirical research on how best to communicate underlying evidence to decision-makers. Groups in diverse fields (e.g., education, medicine, crime) use brief, graphical displays to list policy options, expected outcomes and evidence quality in order to make such evidence easy to assess. However, the understanding of these representations is rarely studied. We surveyed experts and non-experts on what information they wanted and tested their objective comprehension of commonly used graphics. A total of 252 UK residents from Prolific and 452 UK What Works Centre users interpreted the meaning of graphics shown without labels. Comprehension was low (often below 50%). The best-performing graphics combined unambiguous metaphorical shapes with color cues and indications of quantity. The participants also reported what types of evidence they wanted and in what detail (e.g., subgroups, different outcomes). Users particularly wanted to see intervention effectiveness and quality, and policymakers also wanted to know the financial costs and negative consequences. Comprehension and preferences were remarkably consistent between the two samples. Groups communicating evidence about policy options can use these results to design summaries, toolkits and reports for expert and non-expert audiences.

scholarly journals Parking versus Congestion Pricing: Comparative Analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 11-16
Author(s):  
Draženko Glavić ◽  
Jelena Simićević ◽  
Marina Milenković
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Congestion Pricing ◽  
Transport Policy ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Main Task ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Similarities And Differences

This paper through comparative analysis of parking charge and congestion pricing features, aims to highlight their possibilities and identify limitations, and thus to encourage transport policy makers to implement them. Both policies can tackle with negative consequences of traffic, such as pollution, noise, accidents, etc. But they still differ in a way they act on car users. Analysis of this similarities and differences will be main task of this paper. The results of analysis can be useful for better understanding of effects of both policies when selecting measures that can be used by decision makers in solving congestion in cities.

scholarly journals What Works to Reduce Inequality in Higher Education?

2019 ◽  
pp. 10-11
Author(s):  
Koen Geven ◽  
Estelle Herbaut
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Financial Aid ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Causal Effects ◽  
Disadvantaged Students ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
What Works ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Evidence For Policy

Policy makers are increasingly searching for ways to reduce inequality in higher education. There is now a sizeable and high-quality body of literature that estimates the effects of interventions on access and completion in higher education. Our new paper reviews 75 quasi-experimental studies and rigorously compares more than 200 causal effects of outreach and financial aid interventions on disadvantaged students. We found that outreach and financial aid can both work, but important lessons should be learned from interventions that do not show an effect. In this article, we first provide an overview of the main mechanisms driving exclusion, both in terms of access to and completion from higher education. We then summarize the evidence for policy makers, highlighting key lessons, while we also indicate directions for future research.

The Impact of Economic Crisis on Tourism Industry: A Bangladesh Perspective

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Ziaul Haque
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Tourism Product ◽  
International Tourist ◽  
Sustained Recovery ◽  
The Impact

The tourism sector is experiencing numerous challenges as a result of the global economic crisis. After a significant contraction in 2009, tourism rebounded strongly  in  2010  and  in  2011  the  international  tourist  arrivals  and  receipts  are projected to increase substantially. The Tourism industry is expected to show a sustained recovery in 2012. The crisis has particularly strong impact and slightly negative consequences in Bangladesh. The country is undergoing a political crisis, as well, and it seems that the forthcoming elections may be the only solution for the restoration of stability and social peace.  In addition, tourism can be the driving force behind Bangladesh economic recovery. However, for its achievement the country’s policy makers should take several measures towards restructuring and improving the sector. These measures include: enhancement of alternative forms of tourism; environmental protection; creation of quality infrastructure; and boost of competitiveness through a tourism product that offers value for money

The Impact Of Economic Crisis On Tourism Industry: A Bangladesh Perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 15
Author(s):  
Md. Ziaul Haque
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Tourism Product ◽  
International Tourist ◽  
Sustained Recovery ◽  
The Impact

The tourism sector is experiencing numerous challenges as a result of the global economic crisis. After a significant contraction in 2009, tourism rebounded strongly  in  2010  and  in  2011  the  international  tourist  arrivals  and  receipts  are projected to increase substantially. The Tourism industry is expected to show a sustained recovery in 2012. The crisis has particularly strong impact and slightly negative consequences in Bangladesh. The country is undergoing a political crisis, as well, and it seems that the forthcoming elections may be the only solution for the restoration of stability and social peace.  In addition, tourism can be the driving force behind Bangladesh economic recovery. However, for its achievement the country’s policy makers should take several measures towards restructuring and improving the sector. These measures include: enhancement of alternative forms of tourism; environmental protection; creation of quality infrastructure; and boost of competitiveness through a tourism product that offers value for money

Financial Reporting Regulation and the Reporting of Pro Forma Earnings

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary M. Entwistle ◽  
Glenn D. Feltham ◽  
Chima Mbagwu
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Public Confidence ◽  
Strong Impact ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ◽  
Pro Forma Earnings ◽  
Sarbanes Oxley ◽  
Evidence For Policy ◽  
Pro Forma

A primary objective of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is to bolster public confidence in the U.S. capital markets. The SEC aims to achieve this objective in part by regulating the use of alternate earnings measures (colloquially referred to as “pro forma” earnings) that differ from generally accepted accounting principles. This paper examines whether firms change their reporting practice in response to pro forma regulation. Specifically, it examines whether the use, calculation, and presentation of pro forma measures by S&P 500 companies changes between 2001 and 2003. We document three significant shifts in pro forma reporting in this period. First, the proportion of firms reporting pro forma earnings declines from 77 to 54 percent. Second, by 2003, pro forma is used in a less biased manner. Not only is the proportion of firms using pro forma earnings to increase reported income smaller than in 2001, but also the magnitudes of these increases are reduced. Third, in 2003, firms present pro formas in press releases in a much less prominent and less potentially misleading manner. These results suggest a strong impact of the recent regulation of pro forma reporting and provide important empirical evidence for policy makers.

scholarly journals Research use at the Ministry of Health in Burkina Faso: the decision-makers’ perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Dagenais
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Knowledge Transfer ◽  
Burkina Faso ◽  
Informed Decision ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Research Use ◽  
Informed Decision Making ◽  
Ministry Of Health ◽  
Policy Makers

Abstract Background Despite the increased emphasis placed on the use of evidence for policy development, relatively few initiatives have been developed to support evidence-informed decision-making, especially in West Africa. Moreover, studies examining the conditions under which policy-makers use research-based evidence are still scarce, but they show that their attitudes and opinions about research are one of the main determinants of such use. In February 2017, Burkina Faso’s Minister of Health planned to create a unit to promote evidence-informed decision-making within the ministry. Before the unit was set up, documenting the attitudes towards research at the highest levels of his Ministry appeared profitable to the unit’s planning. Method Individual interviews were conducted by the author with 14 actors positioned to consider evidence during decision-making from the Burkina Faso’s Minister of health cabinet. An interview grid was used to explore several themes such as attitudes towards research, obstacles and facilitators to research use, example of research use in decision-making and finally, ways to increase decision-makers’ participation in knowledge transfer activities. Interviews were partially transcribed and analysed by the author. Results The results show a mixed attitude towards research and relatively little indication of research use reported by respondents. Important obstacles were identified: evidence inaccessibility, lack of implementation guidelines, absence of clear communication strategy and studies’ lack of relevance for decision-making. Many suggestions were proposed such as raising awareness, improving access and research communication and prioritizing interactions with researchers. Respondents agree with the low participation of decision-makers in knowledge transfer activities: more leadership from the senior officials was suggested and greater awareness of the importance of their presence. Conclusions The conclusion presents avenues for reflection and action to increase the potential impact of the knowledge transfer unit planned within the Ministry of Health of Burkina Faso. This innovative initiative will be impactful if the obstacles identified in this study and policy-makers’ preferences and needs are taken into account during its development and implementation.

scholarly journals COVID-TRACK: world and USA SARS-COV-2 testing and COVID-19 tracking

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ye Emma Zohner ◽  
Jeffrey S. Morris
Keyword(s):  
Web Application ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Time Lags ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Major Health ◽  
Dynamic Representation ◽  
Graphical Displays ◽  
The Usa ◽  
User Friendly

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major health and socio-economic disruptions worldwide. Accurate investigation of emerging data is crucial to inform policy makers as they construct viral mitigation strategies. Complications such as variable testing rates and time lags in counting cases, hospitalizations and deaths make it challenging to accurately track and identify true infectious surges from available data, and requires a multi-modal approach that simultaneously considers testing, incidence, hospitalizations, and deaths. Although many websites and applications report a subset of these data, none of them provide graphical displays capable of comparing different states or countries on all these measures as well as various useful quantities derived from them. Here we introduce a freely available dynamic representation tool, COVID-TRACK, that allows the user to simultaneously assess time trends in these measures and compare various states or countries, equipping them with a tool to investigate the potential effects of the different mitigation strategies and timelines used by various jurisdictions. Findings COVID-TRACK is a Python based web-application that provides a platform for tracking testing, incidence, hospitalizations, and deaths related to COVID-19 along with various derived quantities. Our application makes the comparison across states in the USA and countries in the world easy to explore, with useful transformation options including per capita, log scale, and/or moving averages. We illustrate its use by assessing various viral trends in the USA and Europe. Conclusion The COVID-TRACK web-application is a user-friendly analytical tool to compare data and trends related to the COVID-19 pandemic across areas in the United States and worldwide. Our tracking tool provides a unique platform where trends can be monitored across geographical areas in the coming months to watch how the pandemic waxes and wanes over time at different locations around the USA and the globe.

scholarly journals Conditions under Which Trickle-Down Effects Occur: A Realist Synthesis Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 69
Author(s):  
Luke R. Potwarka ◽  
Pamela Wicker
Keyword(s):  
Role Models ◽  
Public Funding ◽  
Realist Synthesis ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Sport Policy ◽  
What Works ◽  
Sport Events ◽  
Synthesis Approach ◽  
Elite Sports ◽  
Trickle Down

Policy makers often legitimize bids for major sport events and public funding of elite sports by trickle-down effects, suggesting that hosting events, sporting success, and athlete role models inspire the population to participate themselves in sport and physical activity. According to previous review articles, empirical evidence of trickle-down effects are mixed, with several studies citing marginal or no effect. The purpose of this study is to apply a realist synthesis approach to evaluate under which conditions trickle-down effects occur (i.e., what works for whom under which circumstances?). Using rapid evidence assessment methodology, 58 empirical articles were identified in the search process and critically analyzed through the lens of realist synthesis evaluation. The analysis identified six conditions under which trickle-down effects have occurred: Event leveraging initiatives, capacity of community sport to cater for new participants, live spectating experiences, consumption possibilities on television or other media, and communities housing event venues. The findings have implications for the sustainability of sport policy decisions and public finance, as the likelihood of trickle-down effects increases with integrated planning and sustainable spending related to the above six conditions.

Misusing historical analogies limits US policy options

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Middle East ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Options ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Content Type ◽  
White House ◽  
Decision To Leave ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Future

Significance The Vietnam analogy implies that President Joe Biden’s decision to leave Afghanistan will have deeply negative consequences for the United States. However, Afghanistan is not Vietnam and the Biden withdrawal needs to be considered within the wider context of his administration’s review of US commitments abroad. Impacts The White House will be pressured to clarify the future of other US military commitments, particularly in Iraq. Biden will seek to reassure allies, particularly those in NATO, that his commitment to multilateralism will not diminish. Biden may seek an opportunity for a military show of force, possibly in the Middle East, to refute accusations of weakness.

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