Statistical decision-making

An approach to decision-making involving the use of an equation derived from (accurate and applicable) quantitative information, in contrast to clinical decision-making which is simply the employment of unaided human judgement in the evaluation of information to reach a decision – frequently in the course of coming to a decision through clinical decision-making actors feel inclined (or obligated) to generate a plausible story or narrative in order to “make sense of” and somehow ‘justify’ the decision.

Research over many decades has consistently shown statistical decision-making to have a predictive validity which is at least equal to, but more often superior to unaided human judgement.

(see also: actuarial prediction, statistic, statistical evidence, Law of large numbers, Probability, Decisions – some questions probing ethical dimensions of)