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The Operation Was a Success but the Patient Died: Aider Priorities Influence Decision Aid Usefulness

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  • Rex Brown

    (School of Public Policy, George Mason University, University Boulevard, Fairfax, Virginia 22030-4444)

Abstract

The usefulness of quantitative decision aid is often impaired and its usage impeded by the misaligned priorities of analysts and the middlemen who employ them. Analysts’ professional orientation may dispose them to attend to analytic processes more than to deciders’ needs and to stick with outdated practices. As a result, their analyses may be technically sound but disregard key knowledge, make unrealistic assumptions, or answer the wrong questions. Middlemen’s financial or other conflicts of interest exacerbate such defects. Deciders may have to take more control of analyses (and analysts) and, for example, bypass middlemen.

Suggested Citation

  • Rex Brown, 2005. "The Operation Was a Success but the Patient Died: Aider Priorities Influence Decision Aid Usefulness," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 35(6), pages 511-521, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orinte:v:35:y:2005:i:6:p:511-521
    DOI: 10.1287/inte.1050.0153
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Becker, Kai Helge, 2016. "An outlook on behavioural OR – Three tasks, three pitfalls, one definition," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 249(3), pages 806-815.
    3. Hämäläinen, Raimo P. & Alaja, Susanna, 2008. "The threat of weighting biases in environmental decision analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(1-2), pages 556-569, December.
    4. M. Elisabeth Paté-Cornell & Robin L. Dillon, 2006. "The Respective Roles of Risk and Decision Analyses in Decision Support," Decision Analysis, INFORMS, vol. 3(4), pages 220-232, December.

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