When the Measure Becomes the Target
Written by Studio AM.
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A measure is useful precisely because it is a simplification. It stands in for something we care about but cannot count directly, such as health or learning, but its usefulness depends on how closely the number reflects that goal.
The trouble begins when the measure becomes the reward. A number that was chosen because it followed the real thing now has value of its own, and there may be an easier way to raise the number than to improve what it was meant to represent. A clinic judged on waiting times can shorten them by seeing the easy cases first. A school rewarded only for test scores may devote less time to skills that the test leaves out. The incentives can narrow people's attention, even when they intend to do a good job.
The lesson is not that measurement is corrupt. Numbers can reveal problems that impressions miss. The lesson is to check a measure against the wider goal. Its usefulness can decay when people focus on the score alone. Ask which behaviors the reward encourages, and look for important work that the number does not capture.
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Questions
Choose an answer. The explanation appears after you answer.
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Question 1 of 4
Which statement best captures the essay's argument?
The answer is D: Rewarding a measure can make it less useful unless the wider goal is checked.
The essay supports measurement but warns that rewards can shift attention from the full goal to a score.
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Question 2 of 4
How does the essay say a clinic judged on waiting times could shorten them?
The answer is B: By seeing the easy cases first
That is the exact example given: the clinic raises its score without improving care.
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Question 3 of 4
What does the example of well-intentioned staff suggest?
The answer is A: The problem comes from the incentives, not from bad people.
Incentives can narrow attention even when people intend to do a good job.
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Question 4 of 4
What does “decay” mean in this passage?
The answer is C: slowly lose its value and usefulness
A measure can gradually become less useful when its score no longer reflects the wider goal.
Score: none answered yet.