EA Forum Podcast (All audio) “Measurability is Doubly Important in Animal Advocacy” by emre kaplan🔸
EA-aligned animal advocacy is often criticized for measurability bias. In this post, I argue that the usual epistemic safeguards of leftist advocacy are unavailable in animal advocacy, and as a result, measurability is doubly important in our domain.
What do pro-measurement people say?
Intuition and abstract reasoning are very poor predictors of charity performance. Furthermore, charities differ 100x in effectiveness, therefore measuring the cost-effectiveness of charities enables us to do much more good.
We need careful scientific studies and preferably RCTs to figure out which interventions work. Through measurement, we will have a transparent accountability mechanism which will help us identify cases of failure and stop funding things that don't work.
What are the usual criticisms of measurability bias?
- Not all important outcomes are measurable. How do you quantify the value of a social movement, a shift in public discourse, or groundbreaking legal precedent?
- External measurement misses [...]
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Outline:
(00:27) What do pro-measurement people say?
(01:00) What are the usual criticisms of measurability bias?
(01:52) What is the main leftist alternative to measurable outcomes?
(02:35) You cant do standpoint epistemology with non-human animals
(03:27) Balancing measurement with movement building
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First published:
April 17th, 2025
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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.