Standard Setting and Economic Consequences: An Ethical Issue

This article examines difficulties associated with the Australian Conceptual Framework requirement that standard setters have to take into account the economic consequences of their decisions, particularly in relation to the possibility that qualitative criteria such as representational faithfulness might have to be sacrificed in the process. By identifying and assessing the ethical implications of the standard setting task, these difficulties are shown to be avoidable. Copyright © 1995, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved