Zentrum für interdisziplinäre Forschung

Last year the research group “The Epistemology of Evidence-Based Policy: How Philosophy Can Facilitate the Science-Policy Interface” worked at ZiF for five months to analyse how philosophers can contribute to evidence-based policymaking. They have now published some of their insights in a correspondence paper in the journal Nature Human Behavior.

When scientists and politicians consider the possible contributions of philosophers, they often think primarily of ethicists. However, as the authors of the paper remind us, not all philosophers are ethicists. Philosophers have expertise in conceptual work, such as identifying the necessary and sufficient conditions to make conclusions sound. This analytical and conceptual expertise allows philosophers to offer valuable contributions to the complex problems that arise when science is tasked with informing political decisions.

To understand this process, the research group analysed decision-making processes in politics in light of current scientific knowledge, e.g. during the COVID19 pandemic. They identified various causes of disagreement in policymaking, such as differing valuations of types of evidence, miscommunication, misinterpretation of evidence, or misunderstandings of the policy process. Without transparency in decision-making, the authors state, it is impossible to identify what went wrong in the process of evidence-based policymaking.

Of course, ethicists among philosophers also play a crucial role in the science-policy interface by elucidating the specific ethical commitments that influence the kinds of evidence responsible policymakers require.

The group also discussed the role of values in decision-making in science and politics. They emphasized that philosophical work in this field requires active collaboration between scientists who inform politics and philosophers. The researchers conclude that to foster philosophical engagement in this interdisciplinary field, it is essential for scientists and philosophers to invest time in discussing the experimental nature of their collaboration—preferably through face-to-face interactions rather than only via virtual meetings.

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Schneider, M.D., Sogbanmu, T.O., Rubin, H. et al. Science-policy research collaborations need philosophers. Nat Hum Behav (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-024-01892-x.