PUBLIC

POLICY
What is Public Policy?
There are many definitions of public
policy. Anderson defines policy as a
purposive course of action followed by
an actor or set of actors in dealing with a
problem or matter of concern. He defines
public policy as those policies developed
by governmental bodies and officials.
Public policies are public because of the
source of the policies (governments).
Friedrich defined policy as “a proposed
course of action of a person, group or
government within a given environment,
providing obstacles and opportunities
which the policy was proposed to utilise
and overcome in an effort to reach a goal
or realise an objective or a purpose”.
Two notions are embedded in this
definition: (1) the idea of policy as a course
of action meaning a pattern; (2) the idea
that policy is directed towards the
accomplishment of some purpose or goal.
Both imply that embedded within policy is
the idea of purposive behaviour, meaning
that policy involves deliberate action.
Dye defines public policy as whatever
governments choose to do or not to do.
Two points stand out from this definition:
(1) policies are expressed in choosing to
act as well as choosing not to act. Choosing
not to act means a govt deliberately
choosing not to act on a public problem on
which intervention was called for;
(2) Public policy is not merely a
statement by a government about
some problem and how it intends to
solve it. According to Dye, public policy
is what is actually implemented, i.e.,
what governments do, not what they
say they want to do or plan to do.
According to Pal, public policy is a
deliberate course of action or inaction
chosen by public authorities to
address a given problem or related
set of problems.
Anatomy of a Public Policy
Anatomy of a public policy basically
refers to the essential elements of every
public policy. Each public policy is made
up of (a) definition of a problem; (b)
goals or set of goals; and (c) instruments.
Understanding of a specific policy
requires a grasp of its internal anatomy.
(a) Problem Definition
In any society there are things that are
desirable and undesirable. The
undesirable are the things we want
changed. Undesirable situations are
problematic situations, and they
constitute a problem we would love to
see mitigated or solved.
Dunn defined public problems as
“unrealised values, needs or opportunities
which may be attained through public
action”. For Anderson, a public problem is
a condition that produces needs or
dissatisfaction among the people, and for
which redress is sought through
governmental action.
Defining the problem is very critical to
problem mitigation. The definition of the
problem is the heart of the policy; it is the
key to understanding the meaning and
logic of the policy. Once a problem has
been recognised, the search begins for
possible means of alleviating that
problem.
Policies arise from an identified or
recognised problem. Every policy
therefore contains some definition of a
problem. Public problems therefore
constitute the “why” of policies. Every
policy is formulated on the basis of an
identified problem.
Problem definition provides the
rationale and explanation of the
conditions that gave impetus to the
adoption of the policy. It describes the
unfavourable conditions or
opportunities that led to the adoption
of the policy.
Definition of the problem is the heart
of the policy. You cannot design a
policy before you have defined the
problem.
Defining a problem is not an easy exercise;
a great deal of policy debate revolves
around what the problem is. There are
different interpretations of what the
problem is. Society defines situations
differently due to varying and diverse
ideological, cultural, political, professional
and value backgrounds.
According to Dunn, “policy problems are
in the eyes of the beholder”. It is wise to
view policy problems as no more than
hypotheses or guesses of what the
problems are. Problem definition is a
subjective process, and defining what a
problem is is a problem.
(b) Policy Goals
All policies are goal-oriented. Each
policy tries to achieve something.
Goals are the outcomes that public
authorities seek to achieve through
policy; they are the people’s dream,
where they want to be.
They are the “end-states” of a policy.
Goals are inextricably bound to
problem definition. There is an intricate
relationship between the problem a
policy defines & the goals it seeks to
achieve. Policy goals are derived from
the definition of a problem.
Policy goals are often vague and not
specific. Often a policy has multiple
goals, i.e., a policy often seeks to
achieve a cluster of goals. Goals are
the “what” of policies.
(c) Policy Instruments
These are the specific “means” whereby
a policy is implemented. These are the
“policy tools” or “governing instruments”.
In order to bring about a change in a
problematic situation, governments use
the means of instruments to achieve the
desired situation.
Policy instruments constitute the
“how” of a policy. They range from
voluntary instruments to
coercive/compulsory instruments.
Voluntary instruments provide
discretion or space for choice to
individuals.
Often, there is a lot of disagreement
over the instruments to be used.
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