I think the short answer is this what we think of doing projects in the improving the collective understanding space depends on a number of factors including the nature of the project, and the probability of that general change in perspective leading to actions changed in the future, and how important it would be if that change occurred.
One very simplistic model you can use to think about possible research projects in this area is:
Big considerations (classically “crucial considerations”, i.e. moral weight, invertebrate sentience)
New charities/interventions (presenting new ideas or possibilities that can be taken up)
Immediate influence (analysis to shift ongoing or pending projects, donations, or interventions)
It’s far easier to tie work in categories (2) or (3) into behavior changed. By contrast, projects or possible research that falls into the (1) can be very difficult to map to specific plausible changes ahead of time and, sometimes, even after the completion of the work. These projects can also be more likely to be boom or bust, in that the results of investigating them could have huge effects if we or others shift our beliefs but it can be fairly unlikely to change beliefs at all. That said, I think these types of projects can be very valuable and we try to dedicate some of our time to doing them.
I think it’s fair to say these types of “improving some collective understanding of prioritization” projects have been a minority of the types of projects we’ve done and that are listed for the coming year. However, there are many caveats here including but not limited to:
The nature of the project, our fit, and what others are working on has a big impact on which projects we take on. So even if, in theory, we thought a particular research idea was really worth pursuing there are many factors that go into whether we take on a particular project.
These types of projects have historically taken longer to complete, so they may be smaller in number but a larger share of our overall work hours than counting projects would suggest at first glance.
Thanks for the question!
I think the short answer is this what we think of doing projects in the improving the collective understanding space depends on a number of factors including the nature of the project, and the probability of that general change in perspective leading to actions changed in the future, and how important it would be if that change occurred.
One very simplistic model you can use to think about possible research projects in this area is:
Big considerations (classically “crucial considerations”, i.e. moral weight, invertebrate sentience)
New charities/interventions (presenting new ideas or possibilities that can be taken up)
Immediate influence (analysis to shift ongoing or pending projects, donations, or interventions)
It’s far easier to tie work in categories (2) or (3) into behavior changed. By contrast, projects or possible research that falls into the (1) can be very difficult to map to specific plausible changes ahead of time and, sometimes, even after the completion of the work. These projects can also be more likely to be boom or bust, in that the results of investigating them could have huge effects if we or others shift our beliefs but it can be fairly unlikely to change beliefs at all. That said, I think these types of projects can be very valuable and we try to dedicate some of our time to doing them.
I think it’s fair to say these types of “improving some collective understanding of prioritization” projects have been a minority of the types of projects we’ve done and that are listed for the coming year. However, there are many caveats here including but not limited to:
The nature of the project, our fit, and what others are working on has a big impact on which projects we take on. So even if, in theory, we thought a particular research idea was really worth pursuing there are many factors that go into whether we take on a particular project.
These types of projects have historically taken longer to complete, so they may be smaller in number but a larger share of our overall work hours than counting projects would suggest at first glance.
Thanks! This makes a lot of sense.