Resources Repository
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ArticlePublication 2021Misinformation in and About Science
Humans learn about the world by collectively acquiring information, filtering it, and sharing what we …
Humans learn about the world by collectively acquiring information, filtering it, and sharing what we know. Misinformation undermines this process. The repercussions are extensive. Without reliable and accurate sources of information, we cannot hope to halt climate change, make reasoned democratic decisions, or control a global pandemic. Most analyses of misinformation focus on popular and social media, but the scientific enterprise faces a parallel set of problems – from hype and hyperbole to publication bias…
Government/Law | Culture/Society | North America | Global | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Social Determinants | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2019Misinformation Has Created a New World Disorder
This article, in brief, discusses (1) that many types of information disorder exist online, from …
This article, in brief, discusses (1) that many types of information disorder exist online, from fabricated videos to impersonated accounts to memes designed to manipulate genuine content, (2) automation and microtargeting tactics have made it easier for agents of disinformation to weaponize regular users of the social web to spread harmful messages, and (3) much research is needed to understand the effects of disinformation and build safeguards against it. This description was adapted from the…
Government/Law | Culture/Society | North America | Global | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Climate/Environment | Energy/Engineering | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
ArticlePublication 2017Increasing Vaccination: Putting Psychological Science into Action
Vaccination is one of the great achievements of the 20th century, yet persistent public health …
Vaccination is one of the great achievements of the 20th century, yet persistent public health problems include inadequate, delayed, and unstable vaccination uptake. Psychology offers three general propositions for understanding and intervening to increase uptake where vaccines are available and affordable. The first proposition is that thoughts and feelings can motivate getting vaccinated. Hundreds of studies have shown that risk beliefs and anticipated regret about infectious disease correlate reliably with getting vaccinated; low confidence in…
Government/Law | Culture/Society | North America | Global | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Infectious Diseases | Social Determinants | Policy/Regulation | Global Governance | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology -
Lesson/ModuleWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2016Educational Module: Models and Practice
This module is an introduction to models and to their role in regulatory decision-making, and …
This module is an introduction to models and to their role in regulatory decision-making, and is intended for non-scientists from a variety of different backgrounds including law, journalism, public policy, and business. The module covers three main themes: (1) Core lessons on using models for policy making; (2) Key questions on the art and science of modeling including how models differ from other scientific techniques; and (3) Key ideas on using models in policy-making including how…
Government/Law | Business/Industry | North America | Global | Priority Setting/Ethics | Mathematical Models | Environmental Health | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Conceptual Mapping | Decision Making/Leadership -
Lesson/ModuleWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2016Placing a Bet: New Therapy for Parkinson's Disease
This module is intended for use by business school students. It examines the decision-making process …
This module is intended for use by business school students. It examines the decision-making process at a pharmaceutical company as its chief operating officer decides whether to invest in the development and licensing of a promising treatment for Parkinson’s disease. The module is structured around a drug development case that provides students with opportunities to: (1) analyze a rich and realistic description of the complex scientific and medical results associated with a promising therapeutic molecule…
Government/Law | Business/Industry | North America | Global | Test Performance | Technology Assessment | Chronic Disease/Risk | Policy/Regulation | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership | Quantitative Literacy -
Lesson/ModuleWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2016Educational Module: Shale Gas Development
This module has been developed around the topic of the extraction of natural gas from …
This module has been developed around the topic of the extraction of natural gas from shale. This practice, commonly referred to as fracking, involves several practices that have complex and uncertain consequences. In the module, three scientific concepts are explored in order to elucidate how science is applied toward addressing real-world problems. The scientific concepts are: (1) correlation is not the same as causation, (2) hazard is not the same as risk, and (3) risk…
Government/Law | Business/Industry | North America | Global | Probability/Bayes | Risk Analysis | Environmental Health | Policy/Regulation | Climate/Environment | Energy/Engineering | Science/Technology | College | Graduate | Doctoral | Critical Thinking/Analysis | Decision Making/Leadership -
Lesson/ModuleWeb Portal, Teaching Resource 2017Policy Communication Toolkit
This Policy Communication Toolkit is a resource to bridge the gap that often lies between …
This Policy Communication Toolkit is a resource to bridge the gap that often lies between research and policy. It consolidates tools, materials, and approaches PRB has developed and refined over 30 years of training researchers to communicate to policy audiences. Through this toolkit, users can build skills to bridge this gap, with the goal of increasing the use of evidence in policy and decisionmaking. Research often has profound implications for policy, but without effective communication…
Government/Law | Business/Industry | Culture/Society | Global | Social Determinants | Health Systems | Policy/Regulation | Global Governance | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology | Graduate | Doctoral | Professional | Graphics/Visualization | Policy Translation | Quantitative Literacy -
ArticlePublication 2023Benefits and Costs of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations …
Written mid-pandemic, this article evaluates the direct costs and health benefits of requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for U.S. federal employees and healthcare and private sector workers. These mandates were controversial and some were halted by litigation. If they had been implemented as intended, the net benefits would depend on the course of the pandemic. If a more transmissible variant (such as Omicron) emerges, the net benefits may be large. If the pandemic instead fades, the benefits…
Government/Law | Business/Industry | North America | Mathematical Models | State-Transition | Benefit-Cost Analysis | Infectious Diseases | Policy/Regulation | Economics/Finance | Health/Medicine -
ArticlePublication 2021Why the Backfire Effect Does Not Explain the Durability of Political Misperceptions
Previous research indicated that corrective information can sometimes provoke a so-called “backfire effect” in which …
Previous research indicated that corrective information can sometimes provoke a so-called “backfire effect” in which respondents more strongly endorsed a misperception about a controversial political or scientific issue when their beliefs or predispositions were challenged. This article shows how subsequent research and media coverage seized on this finding, distorting its generality and exaggerating its role relative to other factors in explaining the durability of political misperceptions. To the contrary, an emerging research consensus finds that…
Government/Law | Culture/Society | North America | Decision Psychology | Preferences/Values | Social Determinants | Health/Medicine | Science/Technology