The Politics of Modelling: Numbers Between Science and Policy

This book explores the use of mathematical models for policy-making and their social and political impact, highlighting the need to investigate the social nature of modelling, biases, and responsibilities. It adopts a multidisciplinary approach to investigate how current practices address contemporary challenges and fills a gap in the field.

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 25 August 2023
Publisher: Oxford University Press

This book delves into the pervasive use of mathematical models for policy-making and their profound social and political implications. While the focus of mathematical modelling has traditionally been on technical aspects, its social nature, biases, and responsibilities are increasingly being recognized. To address these emerging concerns, this book adopts a multidisciplinary approach to explore how current modelling practices address contemporary challenges and contribute to the field. By bridging the gap between technical and social dimensions, this book offers valuable insights for modellers, public officials, policymakers, and scholars alike.

Chapter 2, Pay no attention to the model behind the curtain,Chapter 4, Mind the hubris: Complexity can misfire,and Chapter 8, Sensitivity auditing: A practical checklist for auditing decision-relevant models are published open access and free to read or download from Oxford AcademicThe widespread use of mathematical models for policy-making and its social and political impact are at the core of this book. While the discussion of mathematical modelling generally centres around technical features,use,and type of model,the literature is increasingly acknowledging that the social nature of modelling,its biases and responsibilities,are equally worth investigating.This book tackles these emerging questions by adopting a multidisciplinary approach to investigate how current modelling practices address contemporary challenges,and fills a gap in the field,which has historically focused on statistical and algorithmic modes of producing numbers.Thanks to its multidisciplinary appeal,this book will be essential reading for modellers,public officials,policymakers,and scholars alike.

Weight: 602g
Dimension: 161 x 241 x 21 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780198872412