A Modern Guide to Public Policy

Description

This expertly curated and accessible Elgar Modern Guide is dedicated to aiding our understanding of the large corpus of studies and concepts in public policy developed using many multi-disciplinary frameworks and approaches. Bringing together a wide range of specialist contributors, this Modern Guide explores these approaches and methodologies, ranging from the examinaion of the micro level of human behaviour to the impact of the nature of global political systems on domestic policy-making. Scholars and practitioners use many frameworks and methods in order to explore these complex government and policy processes and dynamics and this book provides a handy guide to their origins, applications, and strengths and weaknesses. Chapters address the manner in which policies develop, the mechanisms activated in order to achieve policy goals, and the general patterns through which policies evolve and change. Featuring coverage of both classic and contemporary work in the field, A Modern Guide to Public Policy is an invaluable resource for both graduate and undergraduate students and for practitioners seeking an introduction to public policy and public management. It serves as an entry point into current research findings and methods for both researchers and practitioners alike and is essential reading for those wishing to enhance their understanding of public policy-making as a supplement to their other areas of interest. Contents List of contributors 1 Introduction • Giliberto Capano and Michael Howlett PART I: STUDYING PUBLIC POLICY ACTORS AND DYNAMICS 2 Public policy: definitions and approaches • Michael Howlett and Benjamin Cashore 3 Studying policy dynamics: policy cycles and regimes • Anthony Perl 4 Mapping policy agents: policy entrepreneurs, advocacy coalitions, epistemic communities and instrument constituencies • Daniel Béland and Léonore Haelg PART II: STUDYING THE POLICY CONTEXT AND PROCESSES 5 Addressing uncertainty and ambiguity in policymaking: advancements and dilemmas • Sreeja Nair 6 Making sense of the babble of policy-making: a general framework of the policy process • Nihit Goyal and Michael Howlett 7 Policy over- and underreaction: from unintentional error to deliberate policy response • Moshe Maor PART III: STUDYING POLICY MECHANISMS AND BEHAVIOUR 8 Studying public policy: a mechanistic perspective • Giliberto Capano 9 First- and second-order mechanisms: a case study application • Simone Busetti and Giliberto Capano 10 Understanding policy target behaviour: compliance problems and the limitations of the utility paradigm • Michael Howlett PART IV: STUDYING POLICY TOOLS AND CAPACITIES 11 Policy instruments: definitions and approaches • Michael Howlett 12 Policy resources, capacities and capabilities • Xun Wu, M. Ramesh and Michael Howlett 13 Understanding complex policy mixes: conceptual and empirical challenges • Sebastian Sewerin PART V: STUDYING POLICY OUTPUTS AND OUTCOMES 14 Policy design and non-design: discerning the content of policy packaging, patching, stretching and layering • Giliberto Capano and Ishani Mukherjee 15 The lessons of policy learning: types, triggers, hindrances and pathologies • Claire A. Dunlop and Claudio M. Radaelli 16 Policy dismantling, accumulation and performance • Christoph Knill, Yves Steinebach, Christian Adam and Steffen Hurka Index