PART I THE STUDY OF PUBLIC POLICY

What Is Public Policy? 5

Defining Basic Concepts 8

Government 8

Politics 9

Policy Analysis 11

Why Study Public Policy? 11

Citizens’ Ability to Participate and Make Choices 12

Citizens’ Ability to Influence Policy Decisions 14

The Contexts of Public Policy 15

Social Context 15

Economic Context 16

Political Context 18

Governing Context 20

Cultural Context 21

The Reasons for Government Involvement 22

Political Reasons 22

Moral or Ethical Reasons 23

Economics and Market Failures 23

The Practice of Policy Analysis 27

The Many Uses of Policy Analysis 27

Citizens’ Use of Policy Analysis 28

How to Decide Which Policy Is Best: Using Multiple Criteria 30

Conclusions 31

Discussion Questions 33

Keywords 33

Suggested Readings 33

Suggested Websites 34

Notes 34

Insert Photo

Mark Wilson/Getty Images