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The Precautionary Principle as a Basis for Decision Making

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  • Sunstein Cass R.

    (University of Chicago)

Abstract

Over the coming decades, the increasingly popular "precautionary principle" is likely to have a significant impact on policies all over the world. Applying this principle could lead to dramatic changes in decision making. Possible applications include climate change, genetically modified food, nuclear power, homeland security, new drug therapies, and even war.We argue that the precautionary principle does not help individuals or nations make difficult choices in a non-arbitrary way. Taken seriously, it can be paralyzing, providing no direction at all. In contrast, balancing costs against benefits can offer the foundation of a principled approach for making difficult decisions.

Suggested Citation

  • Sunstein Cass R., 2005. "The Precautionary Principle as a Basis for Decision Making," The Economists' Voice, De Gruyter, vol. 2(2), pages 1-10, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:evoice:v:2:y:2005:i:2:n:8
    DOI: 10.2202/1553-3832.1079
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    Cited by:

    1. John Kambhu & Til Schuermann & Kevin J. Stiroh, 2007. "Hedge funds, financial intermediation, and systemic risk," Economic Policy Review, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, vol. 13(Dec), pages 1-18.
    2. Macauley, Molly, 2006. "Some Issues at the Forefront of Public Policy for Environmental Risk," RFF Working Paper Series dp-06-01, Resources for the Future.
    3. Pies, Ingo, 2011. "Der wirtschaftsethische Imperativ lautet: Denkfehler vermeiden! Sieben Lektionen des ordonomischen Forschungsprogramms," Discussion Papers 2011-7, Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Chair of Economic Ethics.
    4. Alberto Asquer & Inna Krachkovskaya, 2021. "Uncertainty, institutions and regulatory responses to emerging technologies: CRISPR Gene editing in the US and the EU (2012–2019)," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(4), pages 1111-1127, October.
    5. Kjell Hausken, 2019. "Principal–Agent Theory, Game Theory, and the Precautionary Principle," Decision Analysis, INFORMS, vol. 16(2), pages 105-127, June.
    6. G. Cornelis van Kooten, 2011. "Biotechnology in Agriculture and Forestry: Economic Perspectives," Working Papers 2011-05, University of Victoria, Department of Economics, Resource Economics and Policy Analysis Research Group.
    7. Baker, Rick & Ruting, Brad, 2014. "Environmental Policy Analysis: A Guide to Non‑Market Valuation," 2014 Conference (58th), February 4-7, 2014, Port Macquarie, Australia 165810, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    8. Peterson, Deborah C., 2006. "Precaution: principles and practice in Australian environmental and natural resource management," Conference Workshop Proceedings 31906, Productivity Commission.
    9. Annika Styczynski & Jedamiah Wolf & Somdatta Tah & Arnab Bose, 2014. "When decision-making processes fail: an argument for robust climate adaptation planning in the face of uncertainty," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 34(4), pages 478-491, December.
    10. MacAuley, Molly K., 2006. "Issues at the Forefront of Public Policy for Environmental Risk: Comments for the American Meteorological Society's Annual Policy Colloquium," Discussion Papers 10494, Resources for the Future.
    11. Peterson, Deborah C., 2006. "Precaution: principles and practice in Australian environmental and natural resource management," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 50(4), pages 1-21, December.
    12. Marcello Basili, 2006. "A Rational Decision Rule with Extreme Events," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(6), pages 1721-1728, December.
    13. Annette Weier & Paul Loke, 2007. "Precaution and the Precautionary Principle: two Australian case studies," Staff Working Papers 0705, Productivity Commission, Government of Australia.
    14. Peterson, Deborah C., 2006. "Precaution: principles and practice in Australian environmental and natural resource management," 2006 Conference (50th), February 8-10, 2006, Sydney, Australia 137764, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society.
    15. Heyen, Daniel & Goeschl, Timo & Wiesenfarth , Boris, 2015. "Risk Assessment under Ambiguity: Precautionary Learning vs. Research Pessimism," Working Papers 0605, University of Heidelberg, Department of Economics.

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