Three Generations of Policy Implementation

Policy Implementation Development

• Harold D. Lasswell's 1951 introduction of policy science.
• Policy implementation study gaining attention 20 years later.
• Policy implementation field gaining full attention from respected scholars in public policy.

Policy Implementation Research in the United States

First Generation of Policy Implementation
• Emergence in 1980, continued the initial achievements of the first generation.
• Focused on the opposition between the "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches to policy implementation.
• The third generation emerged in 1990, synthesizing the two approaches and focusing on scientific
hypotheses.

First Generation of Policy Implementation

• Described by Helga Pulzi and Oliver Treib (2007) as having "pessimistic undertones."
• Started in the early 70s and dominated discussions about public policy implementation.
• Case studies exposed the complexities of implementing different public policies.
• The first generation provided the American government with information detailing the process of
implementing programs.
• The most important contribution of the first generation was raising awareness about the problems of
implementing different public policies.

Third Generation of Policy Implementation Research

• Thomas Kaplan and Thomas Corbett (2003) discussed the failure in the implementation of the "War on
Poverty" program.
• Some policy scholars pointed to the failure in the implementation of the programs designed to end poverty
in the U.S.

Policy Implementation Generations in 1970s

• Focused on the implementation of President Johnson's public education program.
• Faced challenges due to high federal budget infusion and resistance from planned communities.
• Martha Derthick initiated federal government's model communities in Washington D.C., but failed due to
coordination issues and resistance.
• Jeffrey Pressman and Aaron Wildavsky studied the federal government's program to provide funds for hiring
African-American employees.
• The program's failure was due to numerous participants and numerous agreements.

2nd Generation
Policy Implementation Generation: Top-down and Bottom-up Approaches
• The second generation of policy implementation was more sophisticated, backed by "top-down" and
"bottom-up" approaches.
• The top-down perspective views policy implementation as the expertise of individuals in higher government
agencies.
• The bottom-up approach sees policy implementation as feasible when led or supported by implementers
themselves.
• Implementers are more knowledgeable about how public policies should be implemented, making them
more appreciated.
• These implementers became popular "street-level bureaucrats" and considered key to successful policy
implementation.

Policy Implementation in the Second Generation

Top-down Approach
• Advocated by prominent policy scholars like Donald Van Meter, Carl Van Horn, Robert Nakamura, Frank
Smallwood, Paul Sabatier, and Daniel Mazmanian.
• Defined policy implementation as the execution of policies by officials in government agencies.
• Directed primarily by individuals in pivotal positions in most government agencies.

Bottom-Up Approach
• Supported by scholars like Michael Lipsky, Helen Ingram, Richard Elmore, Benny Hjern, and Chris Hull.
• Believed that the implementation process should be left to "street-level bureaucrats" familiar with the
complexities of implementing agencies.

3rd Generation
Policy Implementation Generation Overview
• Malcolm Goggin and colleagues describe the third generation of policy implementation as more scientific.
• This generation focused on testing multiple hypotheses through sophisticated research designs.
• Statistical tools were used to compare significant information from different implementation sites.
• These methods provided the federal government with crucial information on why some public policies fail.
• Policy scholars praised the exploration of other research designs in studying policy implementation.
• Some suggested complementing these designs with practical research methodologies, similar to the second
generation.
• Soren C. Winter (2007) suggests a more realistic approach to policy implementation, focusing on less
demanding strategies.

Policy Implementation Research Developments

• The third generation of policy implementation scholars developed theories that helped understand the
process of policy implementation.
• The contingency theory, supported by Richard Matland, Helen Ingram, and Denise Scheberle, suggests that
no single methodology can fit all research methodologies in studying policy implementation.
• The theory suggests that the appropriate strategy for policy implementation is contextual, considering the
contingencies surrounding policy issues.
• The implementation of public policies requires unique actions or strategies from the government, and no
single strategy can fit the process.
• The government must respond with the most appropriate methodology or a combination of other
methodologies.