Studying public policy. Principles and processes

Question 1

How is public policy defined according to Dye?

Answer 1

Dye (1972) defined public policy as anything a government chooses to do or not to do

Question 2

What are the merits of Dye’s definition of public policy?

Answer 2

1- Public policy is only deployed by governments
2- Inaction is still relevant for public policy
3 - Unintended consequences are not part of public policy

Question 3

How is public policy defined according to Jenkins?

Answer 3

Jenkins (1978) defined public policy as “a set of interrelated decisions taken by a political actor or a group of actors concerning the selection of goals and the means of achieving them within a specified situation where those goals should, in principle, be within the power of those actors to achieve”.

Question 4

What are the merits of Jenkins’ definition of public policy?

Answer 4

1- Public policy as a set of decisions
2 - The importance of goals selection and the “appropriateness” of solutions
3 - Actors’ capability to effectively implement the best solutions to solve the problems

Question 5

What are the two aspects of public policy?

Answer 5

1 - Policy design (technical): the most efficient way to solve a problem
2 - Political: problems are defined by politics itself

Question 6

What is policy analysis?

Answer 6

Policy analysis is the evaluation of public policy by means of cost-efficiency, outcomes, output and statistical inference.

Question 7

What are policy studies?

Answer 7

Policy studies focus not only on the impact of public policies but also on the factors that shaped policies in the first place.

Question 8

What is a positivist approach in public policy?

Answer 8

It is an approach based on the assumption that sciences provide the means for a comprehensive policy analysis

Question 9

What is a post-positivist approach in public policy?

Answer 9

It is an approach which argues that public policy is determined by how a population is supposed to behave by political actors

Question 10

How do populisms affect policy analysis?

Answer 10

By rejecting expertise in favour of public opinion, populisms undermine the reliability of policy analysts.

Question 11

What is the policy cycle?

Answer 11

The policy cycle entangles the iter of public policy from the invention to the outcome.

Question 12

How did Lasswell first define the policy cycle?

Answer 12

Lasswell (1971) divided the policy cycle into 7 steps:
1- Intelligence
2 - Promotion
3 - Prescription
4 - Invocation
5 - Application
6 - Termination
7 - Appraisal

Question 13

How did Brewer define the policy cycle?

Answer 13

Brewer (1974) divided the policy cycle into 6 steps:
1 - Invention/imitation
2 - Estimation
3 - Selection
4 - Implementation
5 - Appraisal
6 - Termination

Question 14

Which are the differences between Lamswell’s and Brewer’s policy cycles?

Answer 14

Reversing termination and appraisal, Brewer introduced an ongoing model of policy analysis which fits the varied lifespans of public policies.

Question 15

How does applied problem-solving relates to the 5 steps of the policy cycle?

Answer 15

1. Problem Recognition -> Agenda-Setting
2. Proposal of Solution -> Policy Formulation
3. Choice of Solution -> Decision-Making
4. Putting Solution Into Effect -> Policy Implementation
5. Monitoring Results -> Policy Evaluation

Question 16

Which key actors are involved in every different stage?

Answer 16

1. Policy Universe
2. Policy Subsystem (enough knowledge of the problem)
3. Authoritative Government Decision-Makers
4. Policy Subsystem
5. Policy Universe

Question 17

What are the advantages of the hourglass model of policy cycle?

Answer 17

Segmenting the process into stages allows for comprehensive evaluation. Additionally, it takes into account all the actors in the policy universe and is applicable both at local and international levels

Question 18

What are the weaknesses of the hourglass model of policy cycle?

Answer 18

Policymaking is not as straightforward as the model assumes, Politicians merely react to circumstances, yet their courses of action are different and hard to predict. There are also cases where actors start from a solution to solve the problem it might apply to. It is unclear whether the model covers all public policies or not. Eventually, it does not account for causation at all.

Question 19

How is policy capacity defined?

Answer 19

Policy capacity is “the ability to marshal the necessary resources to make intelligent collective choices, in particular to set strategic directions, for the allocation of scarce resources to public ends.” But the ability of government to retrieve policy-relevant knowledge, the ability to frame options, the application of both qualitative and quantitative research methods to policy problems, the effective use of communications, stakeholder management strategies and trust are also important

Question 20

How are skills and competencies defined in Moore’s model of policy capacity?

Answer 20

According to Moore, skills and competencies are the analytical, operational and political capacities. Each exists at the individual, organisation and systemic levels.

Question 21

What is the policy style?

Answer 21

The policy style is the recurring scheme followed by public policies in a certain region, as the result of peculiar socio-political, historical and economical factors.

Question 22

What are the elements of a policy style?

Answer 22

A policy style is an integration of political ideas (i.e. the “policy paradigm”) within a long-lasting governance arrangement (i.e the “policy mix”) and a more or less fixed set of political actors (the “policy universe”), all of which combine in a typical policy process or “policy style”