Theoretical Perspectives on Policy Analysis

Policy analysis in its modern institutional form emerged as a response to the proliferation of government programs in the 1960s and early 1970s. These programs aimed at - among other things – reducing the incidence of unemployment and poverty, rebuilding cities, improving education, and cleaning up the environment. The concerns motivating this type of policy research were – and still are - in large part instrumental: How did programs perform? Which independent variables explained social change? How should programs be designed? Over the last twenty-five years, however, the instrumental approach to policy analysis has encountered a number of setbacks and challenges. Not only did policymakers have little use for the kinds of knowledge that policy analysis supplied, but also the field was also unable to generate a coherent body of policy theory. Against this background of disappointment with the traditional approach and a growing body of critical policy studies, we invite papers that address one or more of the following three themes. First, we explore the implications for the field of policy analysis of the macrosociological and political changes of modern industrial society. In the post-war years the social and political landscape of western industrial societies has undergone large changes. Policymaking takes place under conditions of technical complexity and radical uncertainty about causality and outcome. In many cases large scale unintended consequences threaten to overwhelm the intended effects of public policies. Cultural diversity, moral pluralism and outright political conflict have become increasingly important in the formation and implementation of public policy. Trust in government is no longer a given but has to be generated time and again in concrete policy making situations. The traditional classical-modernist topography of policy making has changed under the increased influence of both local politics and transnational influences. Today policy is made in loosely organized networks of public authorities, citizen associations, and private enterprises. These challenges call for a rethinking of the relationship between social theory, inquiry into policymaking, and politics. Some call for a deliberative approach to policy analysis; others for a focus on governmentality or an “analytics of government”. Second, in this section we aim to go beyond the a-theoretical, empiricist orientation of traditional policy analysis. Traditional policy analysis has largely ignored the important developments that have taken place in the social sciences more generally. We are aware that an understanding of the philosophical and epistemological foundations of policy analysis is essential for understanding the kind of knowledge policy analysis generates and the role it plays or can play in society. Knowledge plays an important role in the policy process; thus, we invite research on different methodological and conceptual approaches such as the role of language in policy formation, policy narratives, interpretation, paradigms, frames, discourse, and practices. Third, we invite papers that restore the original connection, as exemplified in the work of scholars such as John Dewey and Herbert Lasswell, between the analysis of public policy and our understanding of the democratic organization of society. Concretely, we encourage participants to submit papers with a theoretical and empirical focus on participative, deliberative modes of policy formation and implementation. Applications Prospective participants should directly contact the chairpersons of the panels in which they wish to participate. The section is organized by the standing group Theoretical Perspectives in Policy Analysis.