This New Zealand-based report presents a collection of papers produced by the Centre for Public Policy Evaluation as part of their programme of assessing the type of research being used for public sector policymaking. One of the papers examined is Snively's study (Snively, S (1994), The New Zealand Economic Cost of Family Violence, Department of Social Welfare, New Zealand) on the economic cost of family violence to illustrate how assumptions, transferred from one study to another, can come to be regarded as established facts. This study also illustrates that awareness of the subject area is as important as knowledge of the relevant economic principles. The authors find many problems with Snively's study, and note that their critique is not comprehensive, but simply indicative of the speculative and problematic nature of the study and its findings. For example, the prevalence rate stated by Snively is clearly not from "official statistics," nor is it clear that it is "commonly agreed." Snively's scenarios for costing domestic violence are also examined in the paper and found wanting. The authors note that it is not intended that their analyses be taken as specific criticisms of the studies chosen, but rather as illustrating difficulties that analysts face and pitfalls that they may encounter.