Ethical dimensions of quantification

Wendy Espeland & Vincent Yung (2019) Social Science Information, Vol 58, 2, pp. 238-260 Abstract. The ethical dimensions of quantification are seldom analysed. We examine three ethical features that are characteristic of quantification – its capacity to express or mediate power, focus attention, and shape opportunity structures. We do so in the context of three recent examples of new types of quantification : university rankings, the racial classification of Asians in the US, and facia..