Claim · Seed idea · last reconsidered September 8, 2026
A measure that becomes a target stops measuring
The sentence usually attributed to Goodhart, in the form Strathern actually wrote it.
- Territories
- AppearancesSkill
When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. The people measured optimize the indicator, and the indicator stops standing for whatever it was chosen to stand for.
Marilyn StrathernAnthropology of audit1997
Connected ideas
derived from
- 'Improving ratings': audit in the British University systemSource
Where the sentence appears.
related to
- ProxyConcept
It describes the failure mode of a proxy.
- When does optimization remove value?Question
Optimizing a proxy is how optimization removes the value it was aimed at.
responds to
- What happens when proxies become goals?Question
It is the question's most compact answer.