4 Policy Concepts And Policy Evaluation Flashcards
What is a policy
A policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes.
What is a PUBLIC POLICY?
Is a process of balancing different solutions to address different aspects of a cluster of problems.
Public policy can be generally defined as a system of laws, regulatory measures, courses of action, and funding priorities concerning a given topic pushed by a governmental entity or its representatives.
Public Policies have three (3) key elements, what are they?
- A problem definition
- Goals to be achieved
- Policy Instruments to address the problem and achieve the goals
What are the two types of policy?
A policy may be formal or informal.
Formal policy - is a policy that has been planned, discussed, written, reviewed, approved and published by a policy making body.
Informal Policy - is an ad hoc, general, unwritten but widely recognized practice on the understanding within a society that a course of action is to be followed.
Who makes public policies?
- Those who have the authority to impose guidelines for action
- Those who have the right to articulate policy, stakeholders
- Elected officials - Government ministers who are elected MPs, Officials at the apex of Government - the Cabinet/ NEC, In consultation with technocratic and bureaucratic advisors
Non elected public official are then required to implement the policy through programs.
What is a POLICY FRAMEWORK?
A policy framework is a logical structure that is established to organize policy documentation into categories to address new policy development and/ or policy amendments.
It provides a set of principles and long-term goals that form the basis of making rules and guidelines, and to give overall direction to planning and development of the organization. It is a broad set of policies that governs the actions of groups and organizations.
What’s the PUBLIC POLICY CYCLE?
The policy cycle is an approach used to plan and analyse the different phases of policy development.
- Problem definition
- Constructing the policy alternatives/ policy formulation
- Choice of solution/ selection of preferred policy option
- Policy design
- Policy implementation and monitoring
- Evaluation
Then back to 1
Developing a policy is interactive, not linear or static at most times the policy doesn’t just begin when the policy document is launched.
Key policy Concepts
- Policy environment description
- Policy stakeholder analysis within and among policy environments
- Development problem/ issue
- Approach to development and agenda setting
- Policy/ program implementation and oversight
- Policy evaluation
- Policy revision and return to the policy cycle
Who is Involved in the Policy Cycle?
The policy cycle links a variety of key players in the policy process through their involvement with the different stages. Individuals, institutions and agencies involved in the policy process are called actors.
- Government: social control of behaviour, power of coercion
- Cabinet: monopoly over supply of legislation, locus of power- few people make decisions
- Public Servants: technical knowledge and policy advice, service providers
- Political Parties: develop relationships in exchange for political support
- Media: report information to the public, generate interest, shape public opinion
- Interest Groups: seek to advance interests of members, can have a major influence- can force policy network to react
- Legal system: interpret laws, acts independently
- Public: elects government, forms opinions, joins interest groups and coalitions, relies on the media for information
What are Policy Instruments?
Policy instruments are techniques at the disposal of the government to implement policy objectives. After the issue/ problem is defined, tools are found to achieve the desired outcome.
The purpose of policy instruments are to:
Achieve behaviour change within individuals
Realize social, political or economic conditions
Provide services to the public
Governments choice of policy instruments are:
Doing nothing: decide not to intervene
Information-based: influence people through knowledge transfer, communication and moral persuasion (behaviour is based on knowledge, beliefs and values). This is the least coercive of the instruments
Expenditure-based: money is used as a direct instrument to achieve outcome (grants, contributions, vouchers, etc.)
Regulation: government’s role is to command and prohibit - this is the most widely used instrument/ tool. It defines norms & acceptable behaviour or limits activities
Acting directly: providing a direct service to achieve outcome (rather than working through citizens or organizations to achieve goals). Examples include education, garbage collection, Parks and Recreation
Alternative policy instruments:
Bench marking
Co-regulation
Voluntary codes of conduct
Negotiated agreements
Role of Research in PP?
Policy analysis and research is concerned with the theoretical and conceptual analysis of policy making and implementation.
Research is thus used to influence public policy, to inform local, national and international policy that in turn has the potential to transform lives for the better.
what is policy evaluation?
It is an assessment of the merit, value and usefulness of a policy, and is the application of certain principles and methods to assess the content, implementation and impact of a policy.
What are the different types of policy evaluation?
Content evaluation
Implementation evaluation
Impact evaluation
