Austinian model evaluation

Summary

Like Austin’s “performatives,” some models are used not merely to represent but also to change their targets in various ways. This article argues that Austin’s analysis can inform model evaluation: If models are evaluated with respect to their adequacy-for-purpose, and if performativity can in some cases be regarded as a model purpose (a proposition that is defended, using mechanism design as an example), it follows that these models can be evaluated with respect to their “felicity,” that is whether their use has achieved this purpose. Finally, I respond to epistemic and ethical concerns that might block this conclusion.