Connect a policy recommendation to its evidence
A policy brief needs to make a decision understandable without hiding the limits of the evidence. Use Citation to connect its recommendation to checked sources and distinguish findings from judgments.
- Audience
- Teams
- Role
- Policy researcher
- Project
- Policy brief
- Reading time
- 2 min read
Identify who will use the brief and what decision they face. State the relevant setting and time horizon.
List the evidence needed to compare the available options, including costs, uncertainty and implementation constraints where relevant.
Start with the decision
Draft a short statement of the decision and the alternatives. Explain why the question matters to this audience now.
Keep the scope narrow enough for the available evidence. A brief should not imply it resolves a broader policy problem than it examines.
Trace the consequential claims
Connect statistics and factual assertions to the original sources. Check dates, populations and denominators before using a number.
Describe what a source measures rather than assuming it represents the whole population or a different jurisdiction.
Separate evidence and judgment
Distinguish the finding from the recommendation you draw from it. Explain the values or assumptions that shape that recommendation.
Include material tradeoffs and uncertainty. A preferred option can still have costs and conditions that the reader needs to consider.
Edit for the reader’s time
Put the decision and recommendation where the reader can find them. Use concise sections that each answer a concrete question.
Review shortened passages against the originals so that editing does not remove a qualification that changes the meaning.
Prepare for questions
Check the final brief’s references and exported formatting. Keep source notes available for questions about a statistic or assumption.
Revisit time sensitive evidence before distribution. Citation formatting and writing assistance do not replace professional or jurisdiction specific review.