GiveWell previously wrote about general principles for assessing evidence, where “evidence” is construed broadly (it may include awards/recognition/reputation, testimony, and broad trends in data as well as formal studies). Here they discuss their approach to a particular kind of evidence, what they call “micro data”: formal studies of the impact of a program on a particular population at a particular time, using quantitative data analysis.
They list several principles that are important to them in deciding how much weight to put on a study’s claims.