nyttoanalys

Nyttoanalys is a term used in policy analysis and welfare economics to describe a framework for evaluating the benefits and costs of different options by assessing changes in utility or social welfare. The core idea is to compare alternatives on the basis of net changes in perceived well-being, often expressed as net social utility or net monetary benefit. The concept aligns with broader cost-benefit analysis practices and is sometimes discussed in Swedish-language policy literature as nytta-analys or nyttaanalys.

Methodologically, nyttoanalys typically follows a systematic sequence: define the problem and stakeholders, identify outcomes that affect utility, assign measurement approaches for benefits and costs (which may include monetary valuation, quality of life indicators, or other welfare metrics), discount future utilities, and perform sensitivity analyses. Data sources can include surveys to elicit willingness to pay, administrative records, market prices, and expert assessments. Results are communicated as a comparison of net benefits across alternatives, with attention to robustness and distributional effects.

Applications of nyttoanalys span public sector decision-making, regulatory impact assessments, health economics, environmental policy, and urban or infrastructure planning. Criticisms focus on subjectivity in valuing utility, challenges in capturing distributional impacts, ethical concerns around monetization of welfare, and uncertainties in long-term projections.

In relation to established concepts, nyttoanalys shares goals with cost-benefit analysis and welfare economics but may emphasize different valuation framings or regional terminology. See also cost-benefit analysis, welfare economics, utility, and multi-criteria decision analysis.