Theories, Frameworks and Models in Social Policies Flashcards
Defines our analysis and position of social policies on the historical,
socio-cultural, political, economic and environmental context at various levels –
local, national, even international.
Framework
It can also be very useful in understanding the prevailing relations between
political interplay in the country, social classes, gender and other issues that affects
the welfare of the people, and effective for planning strategies for change.
Framework
It is the fundamental differentiating factor among models.
Analytical Framework
Represents a clearly articulated, logical, distinct analysis and interpretation of, and
approach to a given phenomenon.
Model
- Focuses on traditional organization of government
- Describes duties and arrangements of bureaus and departments
Institutional Model
focused on institutional structures, organization, duties and function, without
investigating their impact on public policy
Institutional Model
According to Anderson (1997), approached from the perspective of this theory, public policy can be regarded as reflecting the values and preferences of a governing elite.
Elite Theory
Negative bias against participatory democracy, particularly the participation
of the masses in governance, since the model’s main argument is that it is
not the people or the “masses” who determine public policy through their
demands and action.
Elite Theory
Policies flow “downward” from elites to masses; they do not arise from
mass demands.
Elite Theory
in the words of Marx is derogatorily labeled as “instrument of the State for the alienation of the masses”.
bureaucracy of government officials
and agencies
Dye and Zeigler book entitled
The Irony of Democracy
Dye and Zeigler, in The Irony of Democracy, (1975) summarizes the elite theory:
The society is divided into the few who have power (elite) and the many who do not have (masses). Only the elite allocate values for society; the masses do not decide public policy.
The elite are not typical of the masses. They are drawn disproportionately from the upper socioeconomic strata of the society.
The movement of the non-elites to elite position must be slow and continuous to
maintain stability and prevent revolution. Only non-elite who have accepted the
basic elite consensus can be admitted to governing circles.
The elite share a consensus on the basic values of the social system and the
preservation of the status quo (i.e., private property, limited government, and
individual liberty.
Public policy does not reflect the demands of the masses but rather the prevailing values of the elite. Changes in policy will be incremental rather than evolutionary.
The active elite are subject to relatively little direct influence from apathetic
masses.
heavily criticized for prioritizing the interests of multinational corporations over those of local communities and the environment
to attract foreign investment
Philippine Mining Act of 1995
Public policy results from a system of forces and pressures acting on and reacting
to one another
Also known as equilibrium theory
Group Model
Emphasizes the role of groups in influencing policy outcomes
Individuals with common interests band together to press their demands (formal
or informally) on government. Individuals are important in politics only when
they act as part of or on behalf of group interests
Group Model
Agencies may be captured by the groups they are meant to regulate, and
administrators become increasingly unable to distinguish between policies that
will benefit the general public and policies that will benefit the groups being
regulated
Group Model
The task of the political system is to
1) establish the rules of the game
2) arrange compromises and balance interests
3) enact compromises in public policy
4) enforce these compromises
Influence is determined by numbers, wealth, and organizational strength,
leadership, access to decision makers and internal cohesion
Policy makers respond to group pressure by bargaining, negotiating, and
compromising among competing demands
Group Model
- transport operators, drivers, commuters, and environmental advocates
- aims to address concerns about the age, safety, and environmental impact of traditional jeepneys
- operators are required to consolidate into transport corporations or cooperatives, modernize their vehicles, and comply with new safety and emissions standards
- cost of modernization is too high
- government’s subsidies are insufficient
- program will lead to job losses
- higher transportation costs for commuters
- Government response: extending the deadline for compliance and increasing subsidies for operators
Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP) (DOTR)
- Relies on information theory concepts such as input, output, and feedback.
- Sees the policy process as cyclical.
- Asks, “what are the significant variables and patterns in the public policy-making
system?” - Public policy is viewed as the response of the political system to forces brought
to bear on it from the outside environment.
Systems Model
The environment surrounds the political system.
physical: natural resources, climate, topography
demographic: population size, age, and distribution, and location
political: ideology, culture, social structure, economy, and technology
Systems Model
are brought to it by persons or groups in response to real or perceived
environmental conditions, for government action.
Demand
(part of Systems Model)
is given wherever citizens obey laws, vote, pay taxes, etc., and conform
to public policies.
Support
(part of Systems Model)
A group of interrelated structures and processes that can authoritative allocate
resources for a society.
The actors are the legislature, the executive, the administrative agencies, the courts,
interest groups, political parties, and citizens.
Political System
Outputs are decisions and actions and public policy.
The political system is an identifiable system of institutions and processes that
transform inputs into outputs for the whole society.
The elements with the system are interrelated and it can respond to forces in the environment, and it seeks to preserve itself in balance with the environment.
Systems Policy
national ECCD policy framework of the Philippines
shared governance mechanisms at national, provincial, city/municipal, and
barangay levels to support the delivery of integrated ECCD services
backdrop for the implementation of ECCD programs and services in the
Philippines
Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) Act of 2000
those that concern the whole system, and are influenced by official and unofficial
groups (media, etc.).
It may center on the proper role of Congress or the President, or the relationships
of government and business or citizens and businesses.
Macrolevel policies
involve legislators, administrators, and lobbyists and researchers who focus on
particular problem areas; also called sub-governments, policy clusters, coalitions,
or iron triangles. E.G. civil aviation, harbors, agricultural subsidies, grazing lands,
etc.
Subsystem policies
efforts by individuals, companies, or communities to secure some favorable
legislation for themselves.
Typically presented to a legislator as a request from the “home” district.
The incentive to engage in micro-politics increases as the extent of government
benefits, programs and regulations increases.
Microlevel policies
This model posits three streams which are always simultaneously ongoing. When
the three streams converge, a policy window opens, and a new policy may
emerge.
Streams and Windows Model
focuses the public’s and policy-makers’ attention on a particular problem, defines
the problem, and calls for a new policy approach (or else the problem fades).
Attention comes through monitoring data, the occurrence of focusing events, and
feedback on existing polices, though oversight studies or program evaluation.
Problem Stream
(Part of Streams and Windows Model)
where the government agenda is formed the list of issues or problems to be
resolved by government
occurs as the result of the interaction of major forces such as the national mood,
organized interests, and dynamics of public administration
Political stream
(Part of Streams and Windows Model)
The players are often quite visible, as members of the administration, appointees
and staff, Congress, interest groups, those associated with elections, parties and
campaigns, and public opinion.
A consensus is achieved among those groups and a bandwagon effect or title
effect occurs as everyone wants to be in on the policy resolution and not
excluded.
Political stream
(Part of Streams and Windows Model)
where alternatives are considered and decisions are made
a list of alternatives is generated from which policy makers can select one.
Actors: academics, researchers, consultants, career public administrators,
Congressional staffers, and interest groups.
Policy stream
Trial balloons are sent up to gauge the political feasibility of various alternatives,
either publicly or privately.
They must be acceptable in terms of value constraints, technical constraints, and
budgetary constraints.
Consensus is developed through rational argument and persuasion (not
bargaining).
Tilt occurs when a plausible solution begins to emerge.
Policy stream
When the three streams converge, a policy window may open, because of a shift
in public opinion, a change in Congress, or a change in administration, or when a
pressing problem emerges.
Any one stream may change on its own, but all three must converge for a policy
decision to emerge.
Streams and Windows Model
comprehensive policy document that outlines the country’s development agenda for the medium term, focusing on poverty reduction and inclusive growth
problem stream: country’s development challenges 🡪 poverty reduction and inclusive growth
political stream: government’s commitment to pursuing bureaucratic efficiency and good
governance to maximize the benefits from public spending
policy stream: evident in the plan’s focus on establishing a dynamic innovation ecosystem and promoting trade and investments to improve the competitiveness of domestic industries
Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028
problem stream: growing concern over text scams, cybercrimes, and online bullying, the law will allow law enforcement to pull up a user’s data to investigate any crimes committed with the use of
phones
policy stream: proposed solutions to the problem, requiring social media companies to mandatorily verify the real names and phone numbers of users that create accounts on their platform.
political stream: support for the law from politicians and law enforcement agencies. Legislators argue that the law will deter the proliferation of SIM card, internet or electronic communication-aided crimes
and boost business confidence
law has also been criticized for its potential negative impacts on privacy, civil liberties, and innovation.
Sim Card Registration Law
represents a conservative tendency: new policies are only slightly different from
old policies.
Policy-makers are too short on time, resources and brains to make totally new
policies;
past policies are accepted as having some legitimacy.
This model tries to improve the acceptability of public policy.
INCREMENTAL POLICY OUTPUT
Deficiencies of Incrementalism
- Bargaining is not successful with limited resources.
- Can downplay useful quantitative information.
- Anti-intellectual approach to problems; no imagination.
- Conservative; biased-against far-reaching solutions.
This model tries to understand all the alternatives, take into account all their
consequences, and select the best.
It is concerned with the best way to organize government in order to assure and
undistorted flow of information, the accuracy of feedback, and the weighing of
values.
This model tries to improve the content of public policy.
Rational Model
Deficiencies of Rationalism—
- gap between planning and implementation.
- Ignores role of people, entrepreneurs, leadership, etc.
- Technical competence alone is not enough (ignores the human factor).
- Too mechanical an approach, organizations are more organic.
- Models must be multidimensional and complex.
- Predictions are often wrong; simple solutions may be overlooked.
- The costs of rational-comprehensive planning may outweigh the cost savings of
the policy.
An attempt to combine the incremental and rational approaches to public
policy-making.
attempts to reconcile the day-to-day demands with long range strategies for the
future.
PUBLIC SECTOR STRATEGIC PLANNING
It doesn’t see the organization as wholly determined by the political environment,
neither does it ignore risks.
blends rational analysis with economic and political analyses
It is highly participatory and tolerant of controversy, it concentrates on the fate of
the whole organization; the fate of subunits is secondary.
PUBLIC SECTOR STRATEGIC PLANNING
Simple representations of selected aspects of a problematic situation constructed
for particular purposes.
Policy Models
Titmuss (1990), gives three models of social policy which involve the consideration of the work ethic and the institution of the family in modern society.
Model A. The residual welfare model of social policy
Model B: The industrial achievement performance model of social policy
Model C. The institutional redistributive model of social policy
This model is based on the argument that only when the private market and the
family fail, should the social welfare come into play.
The family and the private market are two natural (or social) channels through
which an individual’s needs are met.
The reason why only at the break down of these channels will social welfare take
part is because the true aim of the welfare state is to “teach people how to do
without it” (Peacock as cited in Titmuss, 1990)
Model A. The residual welfare model of social policy
According to Titmuss (1990), this model emphasizes the role for social welfare
institutions as supplement of the economy and is from theories of economics
and psychology that deals with incentives, effort, reward, and the creation of
groups and class.
Handmaiden Model or Model B: The industrial achievement performance model of social policy
Titmuss (1990) states that this model
views welfare as society’s primary uniting body as it seeks to provide universal services “outside the market in the principle of need.”
Titmuss (1990) also affirms that the model is partly based on multiple effects of social change theories, theories from the economic system and the principle of social equality. He claimed that “it is basically a model incorporating systems of redistribution in command-over-resources-through-time”.
Model C. The institutional redistributive model of social policy
Acknowledged as representation of something else
what are desirable or to be emulated; what ought than what is
interchangeably and generally known as an abstraction of reality, a paradigm, or
a systematic statement of basic assumptions, concepts, and propositions
employed by a school or schools of analysis
Models
this model is the most widely-held view of the way in which policy is made
It outlines policy-making as problem solving process which is rational,
balanced, objective and analytical
Linear Model
In the model, decisions are made in a series of sequential phases, starting with
the identification of a problem or issue, and ending with a set of activities to
solve or deal with it
Linear Model
This model assumes that policy makers approach the issues rationally,
going through each logical stage of the process, and carefully considering
all relevant information.
If policies do not achieve what they are intended to achieve, blame is often
not laid on the policy itself, but rather on political or managerial failure
in implementing it
Linear Model
Linear Model three phases:
- Agenda
- Decision
- Implementation
