Evidence, Instinct and Values The Role of Citizens in Decision Making

Transcription

1 Evidence, Instinct and Values The Role of Citizens in Decision Making Evidence, Decisions, Outcomes: Optimizing the Use of Drugs and Health Technologies 2009 CADTH Symposium Dr. Sharon Manson Singer President April 6, 2009

2 Overview CPRN Research Model The Value of Evidence Acting with Political Instinct Understanding Values The Role of Citizens 2

3 CPRN s Research 3 Canada s leading socio-economic think tank High quality academic-level, peer-reviewed research Research routinely translated into policy options Citizen engagement on policy options to discover what Canadians value Round Tables, Deliberative Dialogues Broad dissemination through our web site over 2.5 million downloads annually Neutral and non-partisan

4 CPRN s Deliberative Dialogue Features Random Selection from an agreed upon sampling frame to ensure representative sample for each dialogue Create safe, neutral, non-partisan space for dialogue A process of justifiable democracy whereby citizens justify their policy choices to one another Creates a repository of deeply held values that can inform political choices 4

5 The Value of Evidence Evidence based decision making assumes that we can know with certainty the right answer Western Bio-medical model is based on scientific evidence and practice Often the Science is biased, contradictory or both Practice is not always informed by evidence Scientific evidence evolves over time Trends are not always correct predictors of outcomes 5

6 Political Instinct Evidence is only one piece of the information used to make decisions At a Cabinet table there are many other considerations and judgments made in the evaluation of which policy options to adopt, reject or push off the table Key question at the Cabinet table: Where s the demand? 6

7 Values Values embody the principles which guide our decision making Values are not easily changed unlike polling or focus group results, values are a stable predictor of how citizens will respond to policy options Understanding citizen values can be and should be known before taking action on policy options 7

8 The Role of Citizens Reasons for Exclusion Decisions are too complex to be made without requisite expertise Scientific base is too complex to explain Protects citizen certainty Perception of an average level of risk Insufficient time for appropriate consultation 8

9 PSHAW! Romanow Commission on Health Nuclear Waste Management Province of Choice for Young People in Newfoundland and Labrador Citizen Forums on Electoral Reform (BC, ON) 9

10 Social Inclusion Builds Social Cohesion Democratic process of decision-making will have to respond to the technological expectations of the next generation of citizens Social networking technologies enable a new form of engagement that is participatory and collaborative Participatory democracy allows citizens to build consensus around trade-offs and collectively build values for decision-making 10

11 For additional information: Receive news of our publications, presentations and events on your desktop by subscribing to CPRN s e-network, our free weekly electronic newsletter. 11