Where does target collide?

In pharmacology a target is the specific molecule, such as a receptor, an enzyme, or a stretch of nucleic acid, that a drug binds to produce its effect. Paul Ehrlich's 1913 Address in Pathology, on Chemiotherapy set out the principle that a therapeutic agent should strike the parasite or diseased cell while sparing the host, an idea he framed as learning to aim a chemical substance at a chosen chemical receptor. Hopkins and Groom's 2002 The druggable genome later recast the idea as the set of human proteins whose binding sites can be engaged by drug-like molecules. The referent is a physical binding site in a cell or organism, not a numeric goal for economic policy, a chosen group of customers, or a probe word shown in a memory experiment.[1][2]

Unit

One molecular binding site engaged by a drug, such as a receptor, an enzyme, or a nucleic acid

Recovery means

Not applicable

Measured by

Assessed by binding assays, affinity constants, and dose-response measures of the drug's effect at the site

In economic policy a target is a quantity, such as an inflation rate or an employment level, that the authorities commit to bring to a chosen value. Jan Tinbergen's 1952 On the Theory of Economic Policy introduced the distinction between targets, the goals of policy, and instruments, the tools used to reach them, and argued that a government needs at least as many instruments as it has targets. Bernanke and Mishkin's 1997 Inflation Targeting: A New Framework for Monetary Policy? applied the idea to central banking, where a stated inflation number becomes the announced target. The referent is a desired value of an economic variable, not a molecule a drug binds, a group of customers a firm selects, or a stimulus shown in a laboratory.[3][4]

Unit

One economic variable set to a desired value, for example a 2 percent inflation rate

Recovery means

Not applicable

Measured by

Tracked by the gap between the realised outcome and the announced value over a policy horizon

In marketing a target is the group of buyers a firm selects to serve, drawn from the wider market and matched to a tailored offer. Wendell Smith's 1956 Product Differentiation and Market Segmentation as Alternative Marketing Strategies introduced market segmentation, the dividing of a varied market into groups with distinct wants, which set up the later step of choosing which group to aim at, the target market. The referent is a selected set of customers defined by shared characteristics, not a binding site in a cell, a desired value for a policy variable, or a word presented to a subject.[5]

Unit

One selected customer group defined by shared traits or needs

Recovery means

Not applicable

Measured by

Delimited by segmentation variables such as demographics, behaviour, or needs, and sized by its share and value

In cognitive psychology a target is the stimulus a participant must respond to, often a word or a picture, presented after an earlier prime. Meyer and Schvaneveldt's 1971 Facilitation in recognizing pairs of words showed that people judge a target word faster when it follows a related word, establishing the prime-target pairing at the centre of semantic priming research. The referent is a probe item shown in an experiment and timed by the response it draws, not a molecule a drug binds, a goal for an economy, or a group of customers a firm selects.[6]

Unit

One probe item, a word, a picture, or another stimulus, shown for a timed response

Recovery means

Not applicable

Measured by

Indexed by reaction time and accuracy of the response to the target, compared across prime conditions