Resources Repository
-
ArticlePublication 2020Premature Deaths, Statistical Lives, and Years of Life
This article clarifies some misconceptions about mortality risk and economic valuation. The mortality effects of …
This article clarifies some misconceptions about mortality risk and economic valuation. The mortality effects of exposure to environmental hazards such as air pollution are often described by the estimated number of “premature deaths” and the economic value of an exposure reduction as the number of “statistical lives saved” multiplied by the “value per statistical life.” These terms can be misleading because the number of deaths advanced by exposure cannot be determined from mortality data; it…
Preferences/Values | Health Outcomes | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Environmental Health | Policy/Regulation | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2019Resource Pack: BCA in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, includes methods papers, case …
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, includes methods papers, case studies, and reference case guidance for conducting benefit-cost analyses in low- and middle-income countries. These resources will aid advanced students and experienced practitioners in preparing these analyses. Investing in global health and development requires making difficult choices about what initiatives to fund and what level of resources to devote to each initiative. Although benefit-cost analysis is a well-established and widely-used…
Preferences/Values | Priority Setting/Ethics | Decision Analysis | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Social Determinants | Policy/Regulation | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Global | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2024Resource Pack: Introduction to Benefit-Cost Analysis
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, introduces the theory and …
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, introduces the theory and practice of benefit-cost analysis. It is targeted towards advanced students as well as practitioners and those interested in teaching benefit-cost analysis. Benefit-cost analysis (also referred to as cost-benefit analysis) is a well-established and widely-used form of economic evaluation. It is designed to inform policy and other decisions by providing evidence on the consequences of alternative interventions. In benefit-cost analysis, all…
Preferences/Values | Priority Setting/Ethics | Decision Analysis | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Social Determinants | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | Economics/Finance | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Global | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Resource PortalWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2021Disease Control Priorities (DCP3)
DCP3 includes a comprehensive review of the efficacy, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of priority health interventions …
DCP3 includes a comprehensive review of the efficacy, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of priority health interventions with the goal of influencing program design and resource allocation at global and country levels. DCP3 includes nine individual volumes, with the first eight structured around packages of conceptually related interventions, and the ninth providing an overview of main findings. Publicly available resources include journal articles and reports, both DCP3 and non-DCP3 related, as well as presentations, working papers, and book…
Cost-Effectiveness Analysis | Priority Setting/Ethics | Costing Methods | Evidence Synthesis | Infectious Diseases | Maternal/Reproductive Health | Child/Nutrition | Chronic Disease/Risk | Mental Health | Injuries/Accidents | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | Global | High School | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Policy Translation -
BookPublication 2018Pricing Lives: Guideposts for a Safer Society
This book describes how the government came to adopt the value of a statistical life …
This book describes how the government came to adopt the value of a statistical life (VSL) approach for valuing changes in mortality risks and argues that its more widespread use would create a safer and more equitable society. The author estimates these values based on how much more money workers would demand to take on more hazardous jobs; his current estimate is $10 million. The book addresses numerous topics such as whether older people’s lives…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Resource PackPublication, Teaching Resource 2023Resource Pack: Books on Decision Making and Thinking
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, features books about how …
This resource pack, curated by the Center for Health Decision Science, features books about how we think, learn, and decide. We aim to provide an introduction to some of the core concepts in decision theory and psychology with this collection, and hope that it will stimulate further inquiry. These books are geared to a general audience; the majority are very accessible reads. The collection is broadly divided into three categories. The first is made up of…
Preferences/Values | Decision Theory | Decision Psychology | Probability/Bayes | Business/Industry | Climate/Environment | Culture/Society | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | Global | High School | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Policy Translation -
Tutorial/PrimerPublication, Teaching Resource 2017Discrete Choice Experiments: A Guide to Model Specification, Estimation and Software
This is a user guide on the analysis of data (including best-worst and best-best data) …
This is a user guide on the analysis of data (including best-worst and best-best data) generated from discrete-choice experiments (DCEs), comprising a theoretical review of the main choice models followed by practical advice on estimation and post-estimation. Authors also provide a review of standard software. Authors argue that choice of modelling approach depends on the research questions, study design and constraints in terms of quality/quantity of data and that decisions made in relation to analysis of…
Preferences/Values | Health Outcomes | Decision Analysis | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Quantitative Literacy -
ArticlePublication 2017Valuing Non-Fatal Risks: Monetary and Health-Utility Measures
This article discusses metrics for valuing environmental, health, and safety policies, which should be consistent …
This article discusses metrics for valuing environmental, health, and safety policies, which should be consistent with both the preferences of affected individuals and social preferences for distribution of health risks in the population. Two classes of metrics are widely used: monetary measures (e.g., willingness to pay) and health-utility measures (e.g., quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)). Health-utility measures impose more structure than monetary measures, with the result that individuals’ preferences often appear inconsistent…
Preferences/Values | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | College | Graduate | Critical Thinking/Analysis -
Lesson/ModuleWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2017Translating Science Into Policy: The Role of Decision Science
This module introduces the basic techniques of “decision science” that are used in policy making. …
This module introduces the basic techniques of “decision science” that are used in policy making. The materials are mainly prescriptive, focusing on how to make good decisions, but also include examples of the systematic ways that people make poor decisions. The module: (1) surveys the meanings of utility; (2) examines decision making in conditions where risk is not an issue; (3) examines decision making in conditions where risk is an issue because the likelihood of…
Preferences/Values | Decision Psychology | Decision Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Government/Law | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | Global | North America | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Policy Translation