Assistance 1 & 2

Policy analysis is finding out what governments do, why they do it, and what difference, if any, it makes. What can be learned from policy analysis?

Description.

First, we can describe public policy—we can learn what government is doing (and not doing) in welfare, defense, education, civil rights, health, the environment, taxation, and so on. A factual basis of information about national policy is really an indispensable part of everyone’s education. What does the Civil Rights Act of 1964 actually say about discrimination in employment? What did the Supreme Court rule in the Bakke case about affirmative action programs? What is the condition of the nation’s Social Security program? What do the Medicaid and Medicare programs promise for the poor and the aged? What agreements have been reached between the United States and Russia regarding nuclear weapons? What is being done to fight terrorism at home and abroad? How much money are we paying in taxes? How much money does the federal government spend each year, and what does it spend it on? These are examples of descriptive questions.

Causes.

Second, we can inquire about the causes, or determinants, of public policy. Why is public policy what it is? Why do governments do what they do? We might inquire about the effects of political institutions, processes, and behaviors on public policies (Linkage B in Figure 1–3). For example, does it make any difference in tax and spending levels whether Democrats or Republicans control the presidency and Congress? What is the impact of lobbying by the special interests on efforts to reform the federal tax system? We can also inquire about the effects of social, economic, and cultural forces in shaping public policy (Linkage C in Figure 1–3). For example: What are the effects of changing public attitudes about race on civil rights policy? What are the effects of recessions on government spending? What is the effect of an increasingly older population on the Social Security and Medicare programs? In scientific terms, when we study the causes of public policy, policies become the dependent variables, and their various political, social, economic, and cultural determinants become the independent variables.

Consequences.

Third, we can inquire about the consequences, or impacts, of public policy. Learning about the consequences of public policy is often referred to as policy evaluation. What difference, if any, does public policy make in people’s lives? We might inquire about the effects of public policy on political institutions and processes (Linkage F in Figure 1–3). For example, what is the effect of the war in Iraq on Republican party fortunes in Congress? What is the impact of immigration policies on the president’s popularity? We also want to examine the impact of public policies on conditions in society (Linkage D in Figure 1–3). For example, does capital punishment help to deter crime? Does cutting cash welfare benefits encourage people to work? Does increased educational spending produce higher student achievement scores? In scientific terms, when we study the consequences of public policy, policies become the independent variables, and their political, social, economic, and cultural impacts on society become the dependent variables.

FIGURE 1–3 Studying Public Policy, Its Causes and Consequences

This diagram (sometimes referred to as the “systems model”) classifies societal conditions, political system characteristics, and public policies, and suggests possible linkages between them.

Policy Analysis and Policy Advocacy

It is important to distinguish policy analysis from policy advocacy. Explaining the causes and consequences of various policies is not equivalent to prescribing what policies governments ought to pursue. Learning why governments do what they do and what the consequences of their actions are is not the same as saying what governments ought to do or bringing about changes in what they do. Policy advocacy requires the skills of rhetoric, persuasion, organization, and activism. Policy analysis encourages scholars and students to attack critical policy issues with the tools of systematic inquiry. There is an implied assumption in policy analysis that developing scientific knowledge about the forces shaping public policy and the consequences of public policy is itself a socially relevant activity, and that policy analysis is a prerequisite to prescription, advocacy, and activism.

Specifically, policy analysis involves:

1. A primary concern with explanation rather than prescription. Policy recommendations—if they are made at all—are subordinate to description and explanation. There is an implicit judgment that understanding is a prerequisite to prescription and that understanding is best achieved through careful analysis rather than rhetoric or polemics.

2. A rigorous search for the causes and consequences of public policies. This search involves the use of scientific standards of inference. Sophisticated quantitative techniques may be helpful in establishing valid inferences about causes and consequences, but they are not essential.

3. An effort to develop and test general propositions about the causes and consequences of public policy and to accumulate reliable research findings of general relevance. The object is to develop general theories about public policy that are reliable and that apply to different government agencies and different policy areas. Policy analysts clearly prefer to develop explanations that fit more than one policy decision or case study—explanations that stand up over time in a variety of settings.

However, it must be remembered that policy issues are decided not by analysts but by political actors—elected and appointed government officials, interest groups, and occasionally even voters. Social science research often does not fare well in the political arena; it may be interpreted, misinterpreted, ignored, or even used as a weapon by political combatants. Policy analysis sometimes produces unexpected and even politically embarrassing findings. Public policies do not always work as intended. And political interests will accept, reject, or use findings to fit their own purposes.

Policy Analysis and the Quest for Solutions to America’s Problems

It is questionable that policy analysis can ever “solve” America’s problems. Ignorance, crime, poverty, racial conflict, inequality, poor housing, ill health, pollution, congestion, and unhappy lives have afflicted people and societies for a long time. Of course, this is no excuse for failing to work toward a society free of these maladies. But our striving for a better society should be tempered with the realization that solutions to these problems may be very difficult to find. There are many reasons for qualifying our enthusiasm for policy analysis.

Limits on Government Power.

First, it is easy to exaggerate the importance, both for good and for ill, of the policies of governments. It is not clear that government policies, however ingenious, could cure all or even most of society’s ills. Governments are constrained by many powerful social forces—patterns of family life, class structure, child-rearing practices, religious beliefs, and so on. These forces are not easily managed by governments, nor could they be controlled even if it seemed desirable to do so. Some of society’s problems are very intractable.

(Dye 4-7)

Dye, Thomas R. Understanding Public Policy Vitalsource eBook for Ashford University, 13th Edition. Pearson Learning Solutions. VitalBook file.

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