SOCW 6361 - Discussion: Policy Process and Public Opinion

Discussion: Policy Process and Public Opinion

Managing public opinion and understanding the balance between its influence and your advocacy goals is a delicate matter. It is a task fraught with uncertainty because, as a policy advocate, you must navigate through the territory of politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists whose primary goals are to appease and please their constituents.

In this Discussion, you select a social problem that is of interest to you and identify how public opinion influences the process and political approaches involved in addressing that social problem.

To prepare: Refer to your Week 2 Discussion

Post a description of the importance of public opinion in addressing the social problem of Substance Use Disorder.

How does public opinion influence political approaches to the problem?

Explain. What policy advocacy approaches and skills can you use to address the problem with political leaders?

What are the social justice implications of your approach?

Be sure to support your post with specific references to this week's resources. If you are using additional articles, be sure to provide full APA-formatted citations for your references.

Learning Resources

Required Readings

SOCW 6361 Webliography

These websites will be required throughout the semester. Become familiar with these websites, especially when doing research for your assignments.

Burns, J. C., Paul, P. D., & Paz, S. R. (2012). Participatory asset mapping: A community research lab toolkit. Retrieved from http://www.communityscience.com/knowledge4equity/AssetMappingToolkit.pdf

Community Toolbox. (2016). 2. Assessing community needs and resources. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/assessing-community-needs-and-resources

Jansson, B. S. (2018). Becoming an effective policy advocate: From policy practice to social justice. (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning Series.

· Chapter 4, "Understanding the Ecology of Policy in Government, Electoral, Community, and Agency Settings" (pp. 100–140)

Rome, S. H., & Hoechstetter, S. (2010). Social work and civic engagement: The political participation of professional social workers. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 37(3), 107–129.​

Optional Resources

MSW home page

Use this link to access the MSW home page, which provides resources for your social work program.