Om värdet av vetenskap och andra belägg vid pandemiskt beslutsfattande

Abstract

On the value of evidence in pandemic decision-making

This article examines the relevance of scientific expertise and evidence in political decision making. It takes as its starting point the criticism levelled at the Swedish government for allowing scientific expertise and the lack of evidence to stand in the way of resolute political interventions to combat the coronavirus. The article identifies and distinguishes between different kinds of argument put forward to explain why the Swedish approach was a mistake. While accepting the arguments as such, the article claims that these arguments have been used in a way that erroneously assumes that the only rationale for requiring political measures to be evidence-based is to guarantee the effectiveness of the measures as such. The article points out other roles that evidence can play in political decision-making and shows that the same considerations that can justify the arguments, can also be used to warrant a demand for even more scientific expertise and evidence.