Ch. 14 Flashcards
what are the 5 stages of public policy making?
- agenda setting
- definition/framing
- policy formation
- implementation
- evaluation/feedback
when does agenda setting begin?
when public officials recognize a problem as worthy of government attention
what is a focusing event?
a major happening, often of crisis or disaster proportions, that attracts widespread media attention to an issue
what is the policy agenda?
the issues that the media covers, the public considers important, and politicians address
what are the 3 big questions asked when framing an issue?
- what are the root causes of this problem?
- how bad is the problem?
- how should public officials respond, if at all?
what is cost benefit analysis?
a typically complex study of the projected costs and benefits associated with a proposed policy
what is cost effectiveness?
the projected cost of a proposed policy as revealed by a relatively simple study
what is ex ante?
before a policy passes and goes into effect; a central figure of conetmporary policy making in the US and other advanced industrial nations
what is the policy window?
a figurative description of the opportunity, often brief, measured in days or weeks rather than years, to pass a bill in Congress or a state legislature
what are the 2 main steps of policy implementation?
working out a law’s specifics and then delivering the government services or enforcing new regulations
what do block grants encourage? give an example
perverse incentives, police departments make money for drug arrests
what is path dependence?
the social science term for how policy-makers’ choices are shaped by institutional “paths” that result from policy choices made in the past
what is an entitlement program?
a government benefit program whose recipients are entitled by law to receive payments, like Social Security
what is fiscal policy?
taxing and spending policies carried out by government, generally in an effort to affect national economic development
