Expert answer:Discuss how the United States operates regaring th
Answer & Explanation:After you complete reading both Stone & Dye, please make sure that you download the PowerPoint Presentation and Outlines for Stone and the assigned chapters of Dye.Once you have downloaded the necessary materials, please answer the following two questions:1. After reading Stone and reflecting upon the principles of the book. Discuss how the United States operates regaring the “Policy Paradox”. Is it a “Market” or a “Polis”? Why? Why not? Please be detailed with your answer. 2. After reading Dye and reflecting upon the principles of Chapters 1-3, please answer the following….As you begin to move forward with identifying a topic for your research paper and you continue to reflect upon the 8-steps by Bardach, which policy model (Dye: Chapter 2) do you believe will be best suited to explain the problem you are examining in your paper? (Institutionalism / Rationalism / Incrementalism / Group Theory / Elite Theory / Public Policy Theory / Game Theory) Please be detailed and support the model that you pick. There is no right or wrong answer. Only an answer that is supported with evidence, or no evidence. USE THESE REFERENCES TO ANSWER ABOVE QUESTIONS PSC514%20Dye%20Ch2%20Outline%20JBlaney-2.docx PSC514%20Dye%20Ch2%20Outline%20JBlaney-2.docx Chapter%201%20Understanding%20Public%20Policy-Castillo%2c%20Kelly(1).docx Chapter%20one%20Public%20Policy%20Analysis.pptx Cox_Outline_Ch.3.docx Cox_Outline_Ch.3.pptx
psc514_20dye_20ch2_20outline_20jblaney_2.docx
psc514_20dye_20ch2_20outline_20jblaney_2.docx
chapter_201_20understanding_20public_20policy_castillo_2c_20kelly_1_.docx
chapter_20one_20public_20policy_20analysis.pptx
cox_outline_ch.3.docx
cox_outline_ch.3.pptx
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Understanding Public Policy (14th ed.) by Thomas R. Dye
Chapter 2 — Models of Politics: Some Help in Thinking About Public Policy
I.
Models for Policy Analysis
A. A model is a simplified representation of some aspect of the real world
B. Conceptual models are used in studying public policy
C. Uses of models
1. Simplify and clarify thinking
2. Identify important aspects of policy problems
3. Help communicate by focusing on essential features of political life
4. Direct efforts to understand by suggestion what is important and unimportant
5. Suggest explanations and predict consequences
II.
Process: Policy as Political Activity
A. Political processes and behaviors are a central focus of political science
B. The policy process model views policymaking as a series of political activities
1. Problem identification
2. Agenda setting
3. Policy formulation
4. Policy legitimization
5. Policy implementation
6. Policy education
III.
Institutionalism: Policy as Institutional Output
A. The institutional model focuses attention on the effects of political and governmental
institutions on public policy
B. Public policy is authoritatively determined, implemented, and enforced by these
institutions
C. Policy does not become public policy until it is adopted, implemented, and enforced by
a government institution
D. Government institutions give public policy three distinctive characteristics
1. Legitimacy
2. Universality
3. Coercion
E. It is the ability of government to command citizens, enact policies governing the whole
society, and monopolize the use of force that encourages individuals and groups to work
for enactment of their preferences into policies
F. The US Constitution stablishes the fundamental institutional structure for policymaking
G. Federalism recognizes that both the national and state governments derive independent
legal authority from their own citizens
IV.
Rationalism: Policy as Maximum Social Gain
A. A rational model implies the government should choose policies that maximize social
gains and minimize costs
1. No policy should be adopted if its costs exceed its benefits
2. Among policy alternatives, policymakers should choose the policy that produces
the greatest benefit over cost
B. Rationalism involves the calculation of all social, political, and economic values and is
not simply measured in dollars
C. To select rational policy, policymakers must
1. Know all society’s value preferences and their relative weights
2. Know all the policy alternatives available
3. Know all the consequences of each policy alternative
4. Calculate the ratio of benefits to costs for each policy alternative
5. Select the most efficient policy alternative
D. Rationality assumes the value preferences of society as a whole can be known and
weighted
E. Rational policymaking requires
1. Information about alternative policies
2. Predictive capacity to foresee accurately the consequences if alternative policies
3. Intelligence to calculate correctly the ratio of costs to benefits
4. Decision-making system that facilitates rationality in policy formation
F. Many barriers to rational decision making
1. Many conflicting benefits and costs cannot be compared or weighed
2. Policymakers may not be motivated to make decisions on the basis of societal
goals but instead try to maximize their own rewards
3. Policymakers may not be motivated to maximize net social gain but merely to
satisfy demands for progress
4. Large investments in existing programs and policies (sunk costs) prevent
policymakers from reconsidering alternatives
5. Innumerable barriers to collecting all the information required to know all policy
alternatives and the consequences of each
6. Predictive capacities are not sufficiently advanced to enable policymakers to
understand the full benefits or costs of each alternative
7. Policymakers do not have sufficient intelligence to calculate accurately costs
and benefits when numerous diverse values are at stake
8. Uncertainty about consequences compels policymakers to stick closely to
previous policies
9. Segmented nature of policymaking in large bureaucracies makes it difficult to
coordinate decision making so all input from specialists is brought to bear
V.
Incrementalism: Policy as Variations on the Past
A. Incrementalism views public policy as a continuation of past government activities with
only incremental modifications
B. Charles E. Lindblom presented the incremental model in a critique of the rational model
1. Decision makers do not annually go through rational review process
2. Constraints of time, information, and cost prevent policymakers from
identifying alternatives and their consequences
3. Constraints of politics prevent establishment of clear-cut societal goals and
accurate calculation of costs and benefits
C. Incremental model recognizes the impractical nature of rational comprehensive
policymaking and describes a more conservative process
1. Existing programs, policies, and expenditures are considered a base
2. Attention is concentrated on new programs and policies and on increases,
decreases, or modifications of current programs
3. Policymakers do not have the time, information, or money to investigate all
alternatives
4. Policymakers do not have the predictive capacity to know all consequences of
all alternatives
5. Policymakers are not able to calculate the cost-benefit ratios for alternative
policies when many diverse political, social, economic, and cultural values are at
stake
D. Completely rational policy may turn out to be inefficient if the time and cost of
developing a rational policy are excessive
E. Incrementalism is politically expedient
1. Agreement comes easier when items in dispute are only increases or decreases
in budgets or modifications of existing programs
2. Conflict is heightened when decision making focuses on major policy shifts
F. Incrementalism is important in reducing conflict, maintaining stability, and preserving
the political system itself
G. Incrementalism may fail when policymakers are confronted with crises
VI.
Group Theory: Policy as Equilibrium in the Group Struggle
A. Group theory views public policy as the outcome of the struggle among societal groups
B. Interest groups
1. Individuals with common interests band together to press their demands on
government
2. An interest group is “a shared-attitude group that makes certain claims upon
other groups in society,” according to political scientist David Truman
3. Interest groups become an essential bridge between individuals and
government
C. The task of the political system is to manage group conflict by
1. Establishing rules of the game in the group struggle
2. Arranging compromises and balancing interests
3. Enacting compromises in the form of public policy
4. Enforcing these compromises
D. Public policy at any given time is the equilibrium reached in the group struggle
1. Equilibrium is determined by the relative influence of various interest groups
2. Changes in the relative influence of groups can be expected to result in changes
in public policy
3. Influence of groups is determined by numbers, wealth, organizational strength,
leadership, access to decision makers and internal cohesion
4. The interest group system is held together in equilibrium by several forces
1. Large, nearly universal latent group that supports the prevailing rules of
the game
2. Overlapping group that prevents any one group from moving too far
from prevailing values
3. Checking and balancing resulting from group competition
VII.
Elite Theory: Policy as Elite Preference
A. The elite model views public policy as the preferences and values of a governing elite
B. Elite theory is summarizes as follows:
1. People are apathetic and ill-informed about public policy; elites shape mass
opinion
2. Society is divided into the few of have power and the many who do not; only a
small number of persons allocate values for society
3. The few who govern are not typical of the masses; elites are drawn
disproportionately from the upper socioeconomic strata
4. The movement of non-elites to elite positions must be slow and continuous to
maintain stability and avoid revolution
5. Elites share consensus on behalf of the basic values of the social system and the
preservation of the system
6. Public policy does not reflect the demands of masses but the prevailing values
of the elite; changes in public policy will be incremental rather than
revolutionary
7. Active elites are subject to relatively little direct influence from apathetic
masses
C. Elitism implies public policy does not reflect the demands of the people as much as it
does the interests, values, and preferences of elites
D. Change in public policy come about as redefinitions by elite of their own values
E. Changes occur when events threat the system and elites act in self-interest to preserve
the system and their place in it
F. Values of elites may be public regarding; a sense of noblesse oblige may result in the
welfare of the masses being an important element in decision making
G. Elitism does not necessarily mean public policy will be hostile toward mass welfare, only
that the responsibility rests on the elites
VIII.
Public Choice Theory: Policy as Collective Decision Making by Self-Interested Individuals
A. Public choice theory applies economic analysis to the study of public policy, assuming all
political actors seek to maximize their personal benefits in politics as well as the
marketplace
B. Individuals mutually benefit through collective decision making
C. Government arises from a social contract among individuals who agree for their mutual
benefit to obey laws and support the government in exchange for protection of the
lives, liberties and property
D. Public choice theorists calm to be intellectual heirs to John Locke and Thomas Jefferson
E. Recognizes that government must perform certain functions that the marketplace is
unable to handle
1. Provide public goods, e.g., national defense
2. Regulate activities that produce externalities, when the activity of one
individual, firm, or government imposes uncompensated costs on others, e.g.,
pollution
F. Explains why political parties and candidates fail to offer clear policy alternatives
1. They are interested in winning elections not advancing principles
2. Candidates will move toward the center of opinion to maximize votes
3. Only ideologues ignore the vote-maximizing centrist approach
IX.
Game Theory: Public Policy as Rational Choice in Competitive Situations
A. Game theory portrays policy as the outcome of interaction between two or more
rational participants
B. Applied to areas in which there is no independently best choice, when choices are
interdependent
C. Players must adjust conduct to reflect not only their own desires and abilities but also
their expectations of what others will do
D. Deterrence is an important psychological defense
1. The effort to prevent an opponent from undertaking an action by inspiring fear
of the consequences such as retaliation
2. Success of deterrence depends on the credibility of the retaliatory threat and
the rationality of the opponent
X.
Models: How to Tell If They are Helping or Not
A. Models are abstractions from the real world intended to simplify, clarify, and
understand what is important about politics
B. General criteria have been developed to evaluate the usefulness of models
1. Order and simplify reality to enable us to think more clearly and understand real
world relationships
2. Identify what is significant to direct attention away from irrelevant variables and
circumstances and focus on the real causes and significant consequences of
public policy
3. Be congruent with reality so that it has real empirical referents and symbolizes
phenomena that actually exist
4. Provide meaningful communication to ensure ideas are understood
5. Direct inquiry and research in public policy to relationships that can be tested
and verified
6. Suggest explanations about the causes and consequences of public policy,
hypotheses that can be tested against real-world data
Understanding Public Policy (14th ed.) by Thomas R. Dye
Chapter 2 — Models of Politics: Some Help in Thinking About Public Policy
I.
Models for Policy Analysis
A. A model is a simplified representation of some aspect of the real world
B. Conceptual models are used in studying public policy
C. Uses of models
1. Simplify and clarify thinking
2. Identify important aspects of policy problems
3. Help communicate by focusing on essential features of political life
4. Direct efforts to understand by suggestion what is important and unimportant
5. Suggest explanations and predict consequences
II.
Process: Policy as Political Activity
A. Political processes and behaviors are a central focus of political science
B. The policy process model views policymaking as a series of political activities
1. Problem identification
2. Agenda setting
3. Policy formulation
4. Policy legitimization
5. Policy implementation
6. Policy education
III.
Institutionalism: Policy as Institutional Output
A. The institutional model focuses attention on the effects of political and governmental
institutions on public policy
B. Public policy is authoritatively determined, implemented, and enforced by these
institutions
C. Policy does not become public policy until it is adopted, implemented, and enforced by
a government institution
D. Government institutions give public policy three distinctive characteristics
1. Legitimacy
2. Universality
3. Coercion
E. It is the ability of government to command citizens, enact policies governing the whole
society, and monopolize the use of force that encourages individuals and groups to work
for enactment of their preferences into policies
F. The US Constitution stablishes the fundamental institutional structure for policymaking
G. Federalism recognizes that both the national and state governments derive independent
legal authority from their own citizens
IV.
Rationalism: Policy as Maximum Social Gain
A. A rational model implies the government should choose policies that maximize social
gains and minimize costs
1. No policy should be adopted if its costs exceed its benefits
2. Among policy alternatives, policymakers should choose the policy that produces
the greatest benefit over cost
B. Rationalism involves the calculation of all social, political, and economic values and is
not simply measured in dollars
C. To select rational policy, policymakers must
1. Know all society’s value preferences and their relative weights
2. Know all the policy alternatives available
3. Know all the consequences of each policy alternative
4. Calculate the ratio of benefits to costs for each policy alternative
5. Select the most efficient policy alternative
D. Rationality assumes the value preferences of society as a whole can be known and
weighted
E. Rational policymaking requires
1. Information about alternative policies
2. Predictive capacity to foresee accurately the consequences if alternative policies
3. Intelligence to calculate correctly the ratio of costs to benefits
4. Decision-making system that facilitates rationality in policy formation
F. Many barriers to rational decision making
1. Many conflicting benefits and costs cannot be compared or weighed
2. Policymakers may not be motivated to make decisions on the basis of societal
goals but instead try to maximize their own rewards
3. Policymakers may not be motivated to maximize net social gain but merely to
satisfy demands for progress
4. Large investments in existing programs and policies (sunk costs) prevent
policymakers from reconsidering alternatives
5. Innumerable barriers to collecting all the information required to know all policy
alternatives and the consequences of each
6. Predictive capacities are not sufficiently advanced to enable policymakers to
understand the full benefits or costs of each alternative
7. Policymakers do not have sufficient intelligence to calculate accurately costs
and benefits when numerous diverse values are at stake
8. Uncertainty about consequences compels policymakers to stick closely to
previous policies
9. Segmented nature of policymaking in large bureaucracies makes it difficult to
coordinate decision making so all input from specialists is brought to bear
V.
Incrementalism: Policy as Variations on the Past
A. Incrementalism views public policy as a continuation of past government activities with
only incremental modifications
B. Charles E. Lindblom presented the incremental model in a critique of the rational model
1. Decision makers do not annually go through rational review process
2. Constraints of time, information, and cost prevent policymakers from
identifying alternatives and their consequences
3. Constraints of politics prevent establishment of clear-cut societal goals and
accurate calculation of costs and benefits
C. Incremental model recognizes the impractical nature of rational comprehensive
policymaking and describes a more conservative process
1. Existing programs, policies, and expenditures are considered a base
2. Attention is concentrated on new programs and policies and on increases,
decreases, or modifications of current programs
3. Policymakers do not have the time, information, or money to investigate all
alternatives
4. Policymakers do not have the predictive capacity to know all consequences of
all alternatives
5. Policymakers are not able to calculate the cost-benefit ratios for alternative
policies when many diverse political, social, economic, and cultural values are at
stake
D. Completely rational policy may turn out to be inefficient if the time and cost of
developing a rational policy are excessive
E. Incrementalism is politically expedient
1. Agreement comes easier when items in dispute are only increases or decreases
in budgets or modifications of existing programs
2. Conflict is heightened when decision making focuses on major policy shifts
F. Incrementalism is important in reducing conflict, maintaining stability, and preserving
the political system itself
G. Incrementalism may fail when policymakers are confronted with crises
VI.
Group Theory: Policy as Equilibrium in the Group Struggle
A. Group theory views public policy as the outcome of the struggle among societal groups
B. Interest groups
1. Individuals with common interests band together to press their demands on
government
2. An interest group is “a shared-attitude group that makes certain claims upon
other groups in society,” according to political scientist David Truman
3. Interest groups become an essential bridge between individuals and
government
C. The task of the political system is to manage group conflict by
1. Establishing rules of the game in the group struggle
2. Arranging compromises and balancing interests
3. Enacting compromises in the form of public policy
4. Enforcing these compromises
D. Public policy at any given time is the equilibrium reached in the group struggle
1. Equilibrium is determined by the relative influence of various interest groups
2. Changes in the relative influence of groups can be expected to result in changes
in public policy
3. Influence of groups is determined by numbers, wealth, organizational strength,
leadership, access to decision makers and internal cohesion
4. The interest group system is held together in equilibrium by several forces
1. Large, nearly universal latent group that supports the prevailing rules of
the game
2. Overlapping group that prevents any one group from moving too far
from prevailing values
3. Checking and balancing resulting from group competition
VII.
Elite Theory: Policy as Elite Preference
A. The elite model views public policy as the preferences and values of a governing elite
B. Elite theory is summarizes as follows:
1. People are apathetic and ill-informed about public policy; elites shape mass
opinion
2. Society is divided into the few of have power and the many who do not; …
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