Policy Capacity and Governance: Assessing Governmental Competences and Capabilities in Theory and Practice

Description

This book provides unique insights into the role of policy capacity in policymaking and policy change, as it is being uncovered at the research frontier in contemporary policy studies. The book is structured into a series of sections on policy capacity in theory and practice, each focusing on a specific aspect of policy capacity and its influence on policy formulation, decision-making, implementation and evaluation. In addition to making a significant contribution to the body of literature on the theoretical approaches to researching the role of capacity in policymaking, it also provides practical examples of the application of these approaches through a variety of national and sectoral case studies. Including contributions from authors working in a wide variety of disciplines, the book demonstrates, across the various topics investigated, many commonalities and consistencies in relation to the study of policy capacity and policy-making. This work has interdisciplinary appeal and will engage scholars in fields ranging from geography to communications, health, social work and political science, amongst others with an interest in public policy. Front Matter ....Pages i-xxii Policy Capacity: Conceptual Framework and Essential Components (Xun Wu, M. Ramesh, Michael Howlett)....Pages 1-25 Front Matter ....Pages 27-27 Policy Capacity in Public Administration (B. Guy Peters)....Pages 29-48 Policy Analytical Capacity: The Supply and Demand for Policy Analysis in Government (Michael Howlett)....Pages 49-66 Measuring Policy Capacity Through Governance Indices (Kris Hartley, Jingru Zhang)....Pages 67-97 Measuring Policy Analytical Capacity for the Environment: A Case for Engaging New Actors (Angel Hsu)....Pages 99-120 Front Matter ....Pages 121-121 Innovation and the State: Towards an Evolutionary Theory of Policy Capacity (Erkki Karo, Rainer Kattel)....Pages 123-150 The Role of Analysts in Public Agencies: Toward an Empirically Grounded Typology (Karol Olejniczak, Paweł Śliwowski, Rafał Trzciński)....Pages 151-178 Policy Analytical Practice Investigated: Exploring Sectoral Patterns in Use of Policy Analytical Techniques (Ellen Fobé, Valérie Pattyn, Marleen Brans, David Aubin)....Pages 179-202 Government’s Credible Accountability and Strategic Policy Capacity: Evidence from the Asian NICs of Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, and Singapore (O. Fiona Yap)....Pages 203-228 Does Political Legitimacy Matter for Policy Capacity? (Honorata Mazepus)....Pages 229-242 Interest Groups and Policy Capacity: Modes of Engagement, Policy Goods and Networks (Carsten Daugbjerg, Bert Fraussen, Darren Halpin)....Pages 243-261 Front Matter ....Pages 263-263 Building Organizational Political Capacity Through Policy Learning: Communicating with Citizens on Health and Safety in the UK (Claire A. Dunlop)....Pages 265-287 Exploring Capacity for Strategic Policy Work: Water Policy in Australia (Yvette Bettini, Brian W. Head)....Pages 289-312 Philanthropic Foundations in the City Policy Process: A Perspective on Policy Capacity from the United States (Madeleine Pill)....Pages 313-335 Policy Capacity Within a Federation: The Case of Australia (Scott Brenton)....Pages 337-358 Dynamic Mechanisms for Resolving Collective Incidents in China: A Policy Capacity Analysis (Jieren Hu, Guoqin Wang, Jingyan Fei)....Pages 359-384 Policy-Related Expertise and Policy Work in Czech Political Parties: Theory and Methods (Martin Polášek, Vilém Novotný, Michel Perottino)....Pages 385-409 The Dynamic Nature of Policy Capacity: Internet Policy in Italy, Belarus and Russia (Nina Belyaeva)....Pages 411-439 Back Matter ....Pages 441-445