Perspective & Approaches in Policymaking

Policy

• a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed to officially by a group of people, a business organization, a government, or a political party.

• designating behaviour of some actor or set of actors, such as an official, or government agency, or legislator, in area of activity such as public enterprise or poverty reduction

Policy Making

• _________ is a sort of a game where we try to make society better and make things done.

Policy

• a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed to officially by a group of people, a business organization, a government, or a political party.

• designating behaviour of some actor or set of actors, such as an official, or government agency, or legislator, in area of activity such as public enterprise or poverty reduction

Policy Making

• _________ is a sort of a game where we try to make society better and make things done.

ELITE THEORY

• focuses on the structure or system that benefits and focuses on the needs of the elite groups in society rather than the public in general

• These few that possess unique qualities such as skills, material wealth, cunning and intelligence have the rights to supreme leadership, while the bulk of the population (masses) is destined to be ruled. Thus social classes are formed

Elite values

Policies made by the elites reflect ________ and prefer status quo to radical changes

GROUP THEORY

• focuses on how groups in power mobilize to achieve positive outcome or the success of a policy.

• The ability of the group that is favoured at one point to sustain its gain depends on its power to counteract the powers of other groups that would make efforts to tilt decisions to their favour.

Public Policy

• the product of group struggle

• temporary point of compromise reached in the course of competition

• tool used by the government to address and meet societal issues and concerns for the benefit and common good of its people

SYSTEMS THEORY

• This focuses on the political groups in power and interested in what the people wants (inputs) and what the government produces (outcomes)

• The political system, as Easton defines it, comprises those identifiable and interrelated institutions and activities (what we usually think of as government institutions and political processes) in a society that make authoritative allocations of values (decisions) that are binding on society (Anderson, 1997)

INSTITUTIONALISM THEORY

• focuses on how the government institutions affect the outcomes which involves the formal and legal aspects in the process.

• One of the oldest concerns of political science and public administration is the study of government institutions since political life generally revolves around them.

• These institutions include legislatures, executives and judiciary; and public policy is authoritatively formulated and executed by them.

RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

• focuses on economics and how everyone acts on their own interests as a rational actor and maximizes social again

• The ______ model deals with construction of public policies that ensure better public policies.

GAME THEORY

• focuses on the idea of competition and cooperation that will result in the formation of incentives to a greater satisfaction of all

public, NGOs, experts, and the private sectors

• policy making is a four-player pursuit refereed by the media where the _________________________________ jostle for power and influence that they overlook the public who watches from the sidelines.