Concentrating on evaluations as one type of knowledge, this paper examines the use of knowledge in parliamentary policymaking. In this very political arena, knowledge is assumed to be used strategically as political ammunition rather than instrumentally for sound decision-making. Yet, there has been little empirical research on parliamentarians as users of knowledge. This paper, therefore, asks how parliamentarians use evaluations in legislative processes and how personal characteristics affect evaluation utilization. Three factors are assumed to be particularly important: the education, the experience, and the ideological position of a legislator. This assumption is tested in a multiple regression model based on data gathered from a survey about evaluation use among the cantonal and federal Swiss parliaments. The evidence from the analysis suggests that personal characteristics matter in explaining different forms of evaluation use, which reflects the need for a more differentiated understanding of parliamentarians as users of knowledge.
