Thanks for sharing, Jamie and David! How do you assess the impact of the Pulse project so far? How has it changed the decisions of Rethink Priorities (RP), and impact-focussed funders?
Hi Vasco, it’s an interesting though not simple question, as we’re currently in the process of looking into how to understand possible impacts of research projects in general (or rather, specific projects/​pieces of research, but not currently specifically/​just for Pulse).
Each time we’ve ran Pulse, we’ve had a handful of specific requests from impact-focused funders or charities for items to include and received positive feedback about the value of the information for them when we’ve done so. To some degree when we do that, we are trusting their judgment as to the value of what they wanted to know about, not explicitly modelling it.
I’ve also seen some Pulse findings in wider discussions in some more and some less formal outlets over time, which suggests some interest and traction—this has perhaps been more the case with some of the AI-related findings. I think providing such information so that people are better informed in what they’re discussing is valuable.
The general awareness findings were, I believe, something of an update for people/​orgs in understanding how much reach EA actually has so far (including at RP), and I believe such information—naturally amongst many other pieces—has been at least discussed when talking about field building for EA or for different particular causes, and possible communication strategies. It could be that the continued polling there is less of an update each time, but for a lot of the information I think that the value can increase as we track opinions and awareness over time, such that some of the knowledge and possibly action relevant information we gain will be realised by understanding trends and how certain events or developments do—or surprisingly do not—affect public perceptions and concerns over different causes.
A less tangible impact that I think could arise over time is a generally better sense amongst decisions makers of what and how people outside of the ‘EA community’ actually think about the things people closer to the community care about. Whilst EA isn’t for everyone, I still think it is important to have a good mental model and ideally an empirically informed understanding of where the general public is on various issues, and contributing to that understanding and awareness is also important.
Thanks for the context, Jamie! That makes sense to me. I would still be curious to know about concrete decisions that were significantly influenced by the Pulse project. Its impact seems less tangible to me than that of RP’s research targeting particular cause areas. However, this could easily be because I am less familiar with movement building efforts.
Thanks for sharing, Jamie and David! How do you assess the impact of the Pulse project so far? How has it changed the decisions of Rethink Priorities (RP), and impact-focussed funders?
Hi Vasco, it’s an interesting though not simple question, as we’re currently in the process of looking into how to understand possible impacts of research projects in general (or rather, specific projects/​pieces of research, but not currently specifically/​just for Pulse).
Each time we’ve ran Pulse, we’ve had a handful of specific requests from impact-focused funders or charities for items to include and received positive feedback about the value of the information for them when we’ve done so. To some degree when we do that, we are trusting their judgment as to the value of what they wanted to know about, not explicitly modelling it.
I’ve also seen some Pulse findings in wider discussions in some more and some less formal outlets over time, which suggests some interest and traction—this has perhaps been more the case with some of the AI-related findings. I think providing such information so that people are better informed in what they’re discussing is valuable.
The general awareness findings were, I believe, something of an update for people/​orgs in understanding how much reach EA actually has so far (including at RP), and I believe such information—naturally amongst many other pieces—has been at least discussed when talking about field building for EA or for different particular causes, and possible communication strategies. It could be that the continued polling there is less of an update each time, but for a lot of the information I think that the value can increase as we track opinions and awareness over time, such that some of the knowledge and possibly action relevant information we gain will be realised by understanding trends and how certain events or developments do—or surprisingly do not—affect public perceptions and concerns over different causes.
A less tangible impact that I think could arise over time is a generally better sense amongst decisions makers of what and how people outside of the ‘EA community’ actually think about the things people closer to the community care about. Whilst EA isn’t for everyone, I still think it is important to have a good mental model and ideally an empirically informed understanding of where the general public is on various issues, and contributing to that understanding and awareness is also important.
Thanks for the context, Jamie! That makes sense to me. I would still be curious to know about concrete decisions that were significantly influenced by the Pulse project. Its impact seems less tangible to me than that of RP’s research targeting particular cause areas. However, this could easily be because I am less familiar with movement building efforts.