Online discussion (for Hifsa)

For many years, policy analysts and scholars have expressed concerns over policy issues arising from the formulation and implementation of public policy. They offered detailed discussions and theories of agenda setting, policy formulation and challenges involved in the process. The foremost model was presented by Kingdon who explained the policy agenda through multiple-streams framework (Kingdon’s Revised Model). Many scholars have examined topics such as Rushefsky’s analysis of the policy process, Gerston’s discussion on issues and Dye’s investigation on the impact of the media on agenda setting. I will evaluate two policies on the above-mentioned literature. The first one is Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018 and the second one is President Obama’s 2009 healthcare reform bill ("Public Policy Analysis: agenda setting and formulation", 2019).

Agenda Setting

Agenda setting is the process through which a policy is brought into the public agenda by making a social issue on a particular policy problem. This is known as agenda setting. It is the process through which a social problem is identified as worthy of attention and discussion. These solutions are examined, prioritized and brought to the public’s attention. Public agenda, also called the local agenda, is a term used to describe issues in which a community identifies it as worthy of attention. The fundamental process of agenda setting includes selection of social problems, raising awareness, engagement of masses, stakeholders and policy makers (Rushefsky, 1996).

There are many issues in communities occurring daily but the public attention is limited in resource where social problems have to compete. For this reason, only certain issues are in the spotlight that capture the attention for communities to get involved in the policy formulation phase. Agenda setting begins when an issue is prioritized. Following this, the public is aware of the problem and the significance by giving explanations regarding the length and depth of the problem. This includes discussing who, what and how problems affect the public and how it can be solve. Then, the problem is generated by focusing their attention on how it has a direct and indirect impact on the public. This motivated the public to take steps in addressing the problem and participate in the policy formulation and implementation phases, such as referendums and policy statements (Béland & Howlett, 2016).

To raise the level of public consciousness and change the public’s opinion, I believe that the media plays a very important role as discussed by Dye on how events are reported shape people’s perceptions. Most of the public depends on one or more media outlets, such as newspapers and social media focusing on the knowledge of current affairs. They formed opinions based on the information they are exposed to. This is significant because it leads to problems gaining the attention of the politicians and policy makers, resulting in policies that affect the country (Dye, 1992). For instance, after the coverage of the 9/11 attacks, the issue of terrorism remains the most discussed issue in parliament until 2006.

On the other hand, the elitist model of agenda explores how the elites influence the policy’s change process to protect their personal and corporate wealth. They do this on their own or through media organizations who help them shape the public’s opinions according to their interests. They also are part of the policy making structure for governments and occupying top positions in the public and private organizations which enables them to supervise the implementation of their chosen policies ("Public Policy Analysis: agenda setting and formulation", 2019). The sociologist G. William Domhoff explains this in the following words: “agenda setting begins informally in corporate boardrooms, social clubs, and discussion groups where problems are identified as ‘issues’ to be solved by new policies. It ends in government where policies are enacted and implemented” (Rushefsky, 1996).

Policy Formulation

The policy formation includes the prioritization of the policy issues, the creation of alternative solutions and the presentation of the argument justifying those policies. According to Kingdon, policy formulation depends on agenda setting. He studied the political processes in the U.S. and identified three categories of variables that created “windows of opportunity” for agenda setting called the Multiple-Streams Framework. These streams are the problem stream (problems which are “public” and need government action”), the policy stream (the analysis of experts which leads to solutions) and the political stream (which includes political factors such as the political atmosphere, legislature and interest group activities). These three streams may be independent or interdependent until a “policy window” opens, which is used by certain actors to influence policy change. Kingdon explained that when this happens, “Solutions are joined together with problems to favorable political forces”. This is when the issue was recognized as a problem and starts being addressed by policy makers. An example, the Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018 is an issue of illegal immigrants that was addressed when the three streams met to open a policy window that led to a policy change proposal (Béland & Howlett, 2016).

Challenges

Since public policy is relevant to internal and external state politics, it needs a deeper examination of the influential factors such as economic, social, political and environmental (Gerston, 2010). There are many challenges involved in the policy formulation process. First, it should answer questions that arise such as why a policy is being made, who is going to be affected by it and in what way. It should answer what methods would be used in the implementation, why is the policy being formulated at that specific point in time. Secondly, it is a great challenge to come up with interventions which are technically apt, well-suited in the local and country-wide context and valid. Another challenge is to derive a policy that is acceptable to conflicting groups in the country. Different sections of the community may have conflicting interests so it is difficult to reach a policy that is liked or at least accepted by all (Dye, 1992). Various interest groups may oppose a policy due to their own values and interests such as the case on healthcare reforms proposed by President Obama in 2009, which were resisted by organization leaders whose profits were decreased due to the reforms ("Healthy Americans Act", 2019). Another example is the opposition on Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018 by groups that wanted measures to make it easier for illegal immigrants to become legal citizens.

Conclusion

Agenda setting results in identification and prioritization of certain social issues. This leads to policy issues which may be discussed by the public, media, stakeholders, elites, politicians and the policy makers to formulate a policy or policy change (Béland & Howlett, 2016). The policy is evaluated and may be accepted or rejected based on how well it conforms to the public opinion. The different interest groups also impact the process as in the case of the 2018 Immigration bill which ended was rejected or the 2009 healthcare reforms which had to be adjusted to reach a deal (Gerston, 2010).

References

Béland, D., & Howlett, M. (2016). The Role and Impact of the Multiple-Streams Approach in Comparative Policy Analysis. Journal Of Comparative Policy Analysis: Research And Practice, 18(3), 221-227. doi: 10.1080/13876988.2016.1174410