-Agenda- The list of things being discussed and sometimes acted upon by an

institution, the news media, or the public at large. P207

-Agenda Setting- Process by which problems & alternative solutions gain/lose public &
elite attention or the activities of various actors & groups that cause issues to gain
greater attention or prevent them from gaining attention. P210
Policy analysis is a process of multidisciplinary inquire aiming at the creation, critical
assessment and
communication of policy relevant information
Policy analysis is a process of multidisciplinary inquire aiming at the creation, critical
assessment and
communication of policy relevant information
Policy analysis is a process of multidisciplinary inquire aiming at the creation, critical
assessment and
communication of policy relevant information
Policy Output vs. Policy Outcome
 Output: the actions that the government takes
 Outcome: the effect that the government has on society through their actions

Agenda setting
• The process in which problems and alternative solutions gain or lose public and
elite attention
• “Locations” where a certain problem lies if it is considered worth thinking about and
overall has a decent amount of attention
• Agenda: it is a list of things people are willing to discuss and or is being discussed at
the moment due to a public issue
• Process:
▪ Agenda universe: general location of all thoughts and ideas possible for discussion
▪ Systemic agenda: issues that deserves to be discussed but just yet isn’t
▪ Institutional agenda: topics that are up for serious discussion and action
▪ Decision agenda: something that has been proposed as a bill
• Rational decision making
• A process where unitary actors are put in place of rational policies that only have few
steps and provide a source of certainty through defined/authoritive context
• Example of process (in order)
▪ Define and rank government values
▪ Specify objectives(goals) that match those values
▪ Identify all relevant options and means to achieve those goals
▪ Calculate consequences for each option
▪ Choose option that maximizes the values

Stages of public policy

 Agenda setting
Policy formulation
▪ The general development of the courses of actions to address the topic in the agenda
▪ Interests’ groups take part typically with the great amount of detail they have on the
topic
▪ The designing and drafting of policy
Policy legitimation
▪ Idea of giving legal force to decisions/authorizing the particular policy action
▪ Mobilization of political support and formal enactment
Policy implementation
▪ Set of activists that are directed towards putting a program into effect
▪ Provision or administration of laws
Policy evaluation
▪ An overall assessment of whether the policies/programs are working
appropriately and worth the time and money

Elite theory
• Idea that the values and preferences of those who are considered as
elites are major influencers of decisions made in public policy
development
• Considers the general public to be not of importance and less impactful
Group theory
• Idea that public policy is a product of a continuous struggle between
organized interests’ groups, allowing a flow of power amongst many
groups rather than a concentration of it in one group
Institutional theory
• General belief that legal structures, such as laws, rules, social norms, etc. are
the authoritative guidelines for social behavior
• Belief that policy is formed in response to the environment: public
opinions and interest groups
• Power is distributed among groups

Satisficing
• Accepting an available option as satisfactory rather than trying to get
something better

Public policy analysis is the study of how policies are developed, implemented, and evaluated.
This field of study draws from a range of disciplines, including economics, political science,
sociology, and public administration.
Policy analysts use a variety of research methods to study policy issues and develop
recommendations for policymakers.
 Elite theory:
• Is the values and preferences of elites dictate public policy development
• Primary assumption of elite theory is the preferences of the the general public are LESS
significant than that of elites in shaping public policy

Group theory:
• struggles between organized interest groups dictate public policy development.
• Power being dispersed, they come together to form a group for a common thing.

Institutional theory:
• policy formation theory that places emphasis on environmental factors: public opinion and
interest groups

Rational choice theory:

• Rational choice theory is an economic principle that states that individuals always make
prudent and logical decisions.
• These decisions provide people with the greatest benefit or satisfaction — given the
choices available — and are also in their highest self-interest.

Rational decision making:

• Define and rank governing values- what to focus on first.
• Specify objectives that match those values
• Identify all relevant options and means to achieve options
• Calculate consequences for each potion
• Choose option that maximize the values define as important

Session 8- Typologies of Public Policy

• Typologies of Public Policy
• Typologies- ways of categorizing things→ try to simplify reality
• Lowi’s (1964) typology- distributive, redistributive, and regulatory
• Ripely and Franklin’s update- protective regulatory and competitive regulatory
• Other typologies (substantive and procedural, material and symbolic, public
and private goods, liberal and conservative)

• Distributive Policies
• Grant some benefit to a particular interest group or other small, well-
defined group
• Ex. San Diego could be considered a small well-defined group
because they don’t affect other states
• Costs are not deeply felt by another group in society
• Typically created with low/no political conflict
 • Ex. farm subsidies, federal funds for local infrastructure (dams,
airports, highways, schools)
• Distributive policies allow for negotiation and distribution of benefits
among members of Congress
• Credit for bringing resources back to the district through pork-barrel spending
• Members of Congress negotiate and trade votes (logrolling)
• Policymaking is easy because costs are broadly spread across society and
beneficiaries aren’t easily identified and pigeonholed
• Policies are portrayed as good for local communities and a way of bringing
home a community’s fair share of federal taxes
• Redistributive Policies
• Give benefits to one group while seeming to impose a discernable cost
on another group
• Intended to manipulate the allocation of wealth, property, personal or civil
rights, or some other values item among social classes or racial groups
Ex. welfare, civil rights, aid to inner-city schools
• Perception is key- benefits being redistributed are not only tangible resources but
rights
• Ex. whites perceived they would somehow become losers if blacks won
the right to vote
• Highly contentious and difficult to pass because less powerful groups must
prevail over or convince powerful interests
• Redistributive policies can also transfer resources from those less well off to
those better off
• Ex. tax cuts
▪ Regulatory Policy
• Policies intended to govern the conduct of business
• Competitive regulatory policy- limits the provision of goods or market participation
to a select group
• Little public scrutiny
• Often made at the state level
• Protective regulatory policy- regulates some activity for the protection of the
public
• Ex. pollution, consumer product safety, business fraud
• Often resisted by the business due to concerns about profit margins and
outside competition
• Highly contentious and often visible due to business resistance
▪ Other Policy Typologies
• Substantive and Procedural Policies
 • Procedural- policies establishing the procedure by which government can
act
• Substantive- policies that actually provide goods and services
• Material and Symbolic Policies
• Material- policies that provide material (tangible) benefits to people
• Symbolic- appeal to people’s values without any resources or actual effort
behind them

Session 9- Policy Design and Policy Tools

• What is policy design?
• The process by which policies are designed, both through technical analysis and
through the political process, to achieve a particular goal
• Policy design and policy implementation are not easily separated
• Policy design→ policy implementation→ policy outcomes
• Translating Policy into Action
• The policy process continues during design and implementation as
different agencies have to interpret what new policies allow or require
them to do
• Translating legislation into agency rules and regulations can be difficult and
very contentious
• Outputs and Outcomes
In the policy process, outputs are
 The things the policy process produces (laws, regulations, rules)
 The effort government expends to address a problem (staff hours, money)
▪ Outcomes are the result of policy implementation
• Outcomes may be intended or unintended, positive or negative
• Why measure outputs?
• Many agencies focus on measuring outputs as opposed to outcomes
• It is easier
• It can be less politically risky
• It can be difficult to establish causal ties between policies and outcomes
without a good causal model