Effectiveness means the capability of producing an effect.
In Physics, an effective theory is, similar to a phenomenological theory, a framework intended to explain certain (observed) effects without the claim that the theory correctly models the underlying (unobserved) processes. Physics (Greek Physis - φύσις in everyday terms is the Science of Matter and its motion. The term phenomenology in Science is used to describe a body of knowledge which relates several different empirical observations of phenomena to each other An example is an effective field theory that "pretends" that certain effects are caused by a field even if it is known that this is not actually the case. In Physics, an effective field theory is an approximate theory (usually a Quantum field theory) that includes appropriate degrees of freedom to describe In Physics, a field is a Physical quantity associated to each point of Spacetime. In a way, any theory of Physics is fundamentally an effective theory, since there is no meaningful distinction of observables and reality within the scope of Physics (see also FAPP, cogito ergo sum, Phenomenalism, Pragmatism). Reality, in everyday usage means "the state of things as they actually exist" For All Practical Purposes (FAPP is a Pragmatic approach towards the problem of Incompleteness of every scientific Theory and the usage of " la Cogito ergo sum " (I think therefore I am sometimes misquoted as la Dubito ergo cogito ergo sum (Latin "I doubt therefore I think therefore I am" In Epistemology and the Philosophy of perception, phenomenalism is the view that physical objects do not exist as things in themselves but only as perceptual Pragmatism generally considered to have originated in the late nineteenth century with Charles Peirce, who first stated the Pragmatic maxim.
The word effective is sometimes used in a quantitative way, "being very or not much effective". However it does not inform on the direction (positive or negative) and the comparison to a standard of the given effect. Efficacy, on the other hand, is the ability to produce a desired amount of the desired effect, or success in achieving a given goal. Efficacy is the capacity to produce a desired size of an effect under Ideal or Optimal conditions Contrary to efficiency, the focus of efficacy is the achievement as such, not the resources spent in achieving the desired effect. Therefore, what is effective is not necessarily efficacious, and what is efficacious is not necessarily efficient.
An ordinary way to distinguish among effectiveness, efficacy, and efficiency:
- efficiency: doing things "right", i. e. in the best and most economical way
- efficacy: getting things done, i. e. meeting immediate targets
- effectiveness: doing "right" things, i. e. setting right targets to achieve an overall goal (the effect)
- (effectivity: mostly synonym to effectiveness; usage is rather rare)
See also
For the medical meaning of 'effectiveness', see discussion at efficacy. Efficacy is the capacity to produce a desired size of an effect under Ideal or Optimal conditions Efficacy is the capacity to produce a desired size of an effect under Ideal or Optimal conditions
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