Negotiating Values

'Dave Weimer is one of the most penetrating voices on public policy. With Negotiating Values, he engages with critical questions: how do institutions make life and death decisions? How do they convert public values into organizational rules? How can democracy and professional expertise co-exist? These questions have never been more important, and Weimer answers them with extraordinary insight.' Donald Moynihan, Harris Family Professor, Ford School of Public policy, University of Michigan Negotiating Values extends David Weimer substantial contribution to the study of policymaking by exploring 2018 reforms to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, which determines the allocation of deceased-donor organs for transplants. Typically, what happens inside organizations is difficult to study. Weimer leveraged the shift to virtual meetings to expand our understanding of policy implementation, in real time. The book is a rich and important study of the role of evidence in policymaking. The book breaks new ground by detailing the use of machine learning and by analyzing the nature of 'explicit, tacit, and interactional expertise.' Negotiating Values informs our understanding of stakeholders in complex areas of policymaking and Weimer makes a compelling case for expanding how we understand public involvement as 'community participation.' Miriam Laugesen, Associate Professor, Columbia University