Statistics for Public Policy : A Practical Guide to Being Mostly Right (or at Least Respectably Wrong)

Jeremy G. Weber

ISBN 10: 0226830756 / ISBN 13: 9780226830759

Published by The University Of Chicago Press Jan 2024, 2024

About this Item

Neuware - 'A highly overdue guide to making policy work, quantitatively. In the creation of public policy, statistics are both an essential tool and a frequent antagonist. Statistics for Public Policy is a short, prose-forward crash course in wielding these unruly tools for maximum impact and clarity in the making and evaluating of public policies. Former White House economist Jeremy Weber offers an accessible voice of experience and empathy for the challenges of this work, with particular focus on six core practices: Thinking big-picture about statistical analysis-where it's helpful, where it's irrelevant, and where can be decisive Critically engaging with data, with particular focus on its origins, purpose, and generalizability-not necessarily whether it is representative Understanding the strengths and limits of the simple statistical methods that dominate most policy discussions Recognizing the limits of statistical significance and effect size-and the surprising power of using the right adjectives and knowing your audience Distinguishing correlation from causation (and in doing so, avoiding the traps of phantom problems-or applying phony solutions to real problems) Maintaining credibility by being right or at least respectfully wrong in every setting Brief, accessible, and deeply practical, Weber offers an essential resource for all students and professionals working at the intersections of data and policy interventions. Statistics for Public Policy dispenses with the opacity and technical language that have long made other books in this space impenetrable. This book is all signal, no noise'.

Seller Inventory # 9780226830759

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Statistics for Public Policy : A Practical Guide to Being Mostly Right (or at Least Respectably Wrong)
• Publisher: The University Of Chicago Press Jan 2024
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0226830756
• ISBN 13: 9780226830759
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 215W x 138H x 13D millimeters 215 millimeters width by 138 millimeters height by 13 millimeters depth
• Weight: 260 grams

About this title

Synopsis

A long-overdue guide on how to use statistics to bring clarity, not confusion, to policy work.

Statistics are an essential tool for making, evaluating, and improving public policy. Statistics for Public Policy is a crash course in wielding these unruly tools to bring maximum clarity to policy work. Former White House economist Jeremy G. Weber offers an accessible voice of experience for the challenges of this work, focusing on seven core practices:

Thinking big-picture about the role of data in decisions
Critically engaging with data by focusing on its origins, purpose, and generalizability
Understanding the strengths and limits of the simple statistics that dominate most policy discussions
Developing reasons for considering a number to be practically small or large
Distinguishing correlation from causation and minor causes from major causes
Communicating statistics so that they are seen, understood, and believed
Maintaining credibility by being right (or at least respectably wrong) in every setting Statistics for Public Policy dispenses with the opacity and technical language that have long made this space impenetrable; instead, Weber offers an essential resource for all students and professionals working at the intersections of data and policy interventions. This book is all signal, no noise.

About the Author

Jeremy G. Weber is professor in the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. He previously served as a chief economist for the White House Council of Economic Advisers.