AbstractThe concept ofWeltanschauungis just as integral to the processes of operational research and hard systems analysis as in the soft systems area. With reference to a method designed to make explicit the role of values in quantitative decision-making, this paper explores (i) the importance of‘problem framing’and‘system description’for the subsequent course of the analysis and of any associated conflict, (ii) the ways in which different measures of performance selectively serve competing interests and values, and (iii) the importance of the ordering of stages of the analysis. Illustrative examples are taken from a case study in urban road development.