Essay Public Policy Evalution

Evaluation is a process that is used to look at the project, policy or program critically. It includes the collection and analyzing information that is related to the program or policy and that of its outcome. The Main purpose is to improve the policy or the program effectiveness. This will also help to identify any of the weak areas and changes that need to be made in the policy.

Chapter one of American Public Policy, by B. Guy Peters, gives an in depth explanation of what American public policy is. The definition that Peters gives of Public policy is the” sum of government activities whether pursued directly or through agents, as those activities have an influence on the lives of citizens” (4). This definition of public policy can be categorized into three levels that will make differences in citizen’s lives. The first level is policy choices. This level is when, “decisions made by politicians, civil servants, or other granted authority that are directed toward using public power to affect the lives of the citizens” (4). All of these choices that are made by the president, congressman, or others can evolve into a

After reading this article, the author gave readers a bunch of ideas about the public policy field. The author illustrated the definition of public policy clearly, explained specifically the broad field of public policy, and absolutely brought out reliable theories. It is a very useful chapter for the novice of public policy or public administration. By all means, this article provides multidimensional fashions to analyze or determine the

In this assignment I am going to analyse how government policies are developed, covering all aspects of the policy making process.

Policy evaluation applies accepted social science research methods to public programs. The same research designs used in laboratory experiments are not always practicable in the field, but the same principles can guide the planning and execution of policy evaluation.

One could only surmise how drastically different these statistic might have been if policy took a more holistic approach in the initial implementation process.

To proceed incrementally with proposed decisions and to evaluate objectives as they process information from making decisions. By defining policy measures and using numbers to justify decisions that can define outcomes based on policy and measurement. Measuring a problem creates subtle pressure to do something about it, but at the same time, some level of the measure can become a norm and therefore an acceptable status quo (Stone, 2012, p. 188). To avoid costly delays in progress, by evaluating the measurements of a policy as it proceeds, policy makers can avoid such delays and change the course of action to find consensus on how to

“Policy research puts the spotlight on the variables that indicate relationships of social problems and other variables that public policy can manoeuvre” (Weimer and Vining, 2011, p. 25). Therefore, it is understandable that a better-educated and informed public that is present nowadays is more concerned about governments doing ‘the right thing’. Likewise, there is more and more scepticism about government interventions, especially when they inherit monetary spending (Davies et al., 2000, pp. 1–2). These are only a few reasons why in the field of policy making evidence became a substantial part. According to the vast amount of literature and the importance assigned to this topic from governments globally, one could think we have arrived in a “scientifically guided society” (Lindblom, 1990, pp. 213–214), (Nutley and Webb, 2000, p. 13). The purpose of this essay is to answer the question, if the barriers to evidence-based policy making are much smaller than most critics suggest. For this reason, a short introduction and the current debate about evidence-based policy will be given in the first instance. Secondly, known barriers of evidence-based policy making like timing or resources and ways to overcome them, will be presented. Based on these findings a concept that explains the claim that the barriers of evidence-based policymaking (EBP) are much smaller

Public policies are developed in response to the existence of a perceived problem or an opportunity. The analysis delves into a public issue or problem and assesses a set of proposed government action for addressing the issue. The job of the analyst is to describe the background and status of an issue and then, using research and analysis, determine a proper government action to resolve the issue. By comparing options and weighing their expected benefits, the analyst should conclude with a recommended course of action or inaction to addressing the issue.

In this paper I will be discussing how our class came to a consensus on our policy analysis framework. To understand what we are attempting to accomplish, you need to understand the denotation of policy analysis. Policy analysis is a technique used in public administration so individuals can evaluate and scrutinize policies. Policy analysis is not only limited to policy’s that are already enacted, policy analysis can be used to analyze perspective policy’s. There are already a handful of policy analysis frameworks available for use. These include: Chambers 2009, Gilbert and Terrell 2009, Popple and Leighninger 2004, and Dobelstein 2003. Many of the frameworks are heavily influenced by the work of Eveline Burns, who was prevalent in the 1940’s and 1950’s. While these frameworks would have been suitable to use for our analysis our class chose to create our own framework to help with analysis. In these next few paragraphs I will explain how and why we chose what we did.

approach, we adopt the view that policy implementation is an analytical enterprise that is the

A program evaluation offers a way to determine if adjustments are needed to improve upon the project in order for it to remain successful. Furthermore, the project evaluation team will analyze and measure each component of the outcome, input, and process in order to clarify the program’s objectives and goals. Thus creating a framework of evaluation methods and questions in addition to setting up a timeline for the evaluation activities will assist in the evaluation (CDC, 2011; HRSA, n.d.; McGonigle & Mastrian, 2015). The goal of outcome measures is to describe the overall performance of the process; therefore, outcome measurement will determine the program cost-effectiveness, attribution, and efficiency (CDC, 2012; HRSA, n.d.; McGonigle & Mastrian, 2015). There will be additional evaluation concerning the input measures, which are the resources that were put into the process. Lastly, the appraisal of process measures will provide data regarding the performance each course of action involved in the implantation of the project (HRSA, n.d.). After a thorough evaluation of the project, recommendations and the dissemination of results will be prepared and

The discussion in relation to policy and policy implementation is one that revolves around a major primary issue that is known as legislation. In other words, policies are basically pieces of legislation that are enforced and put into place through an effective process of implementation. At this juncture, it is critical to note that the process of law enforcement is one that also comes with its own costs that need to be met by the same government that fosters the implementation of the same. Certain enforcement processes would require the hiring of new workers in order to effectively meet the desired objectives of the legislation (Beadle, 2013). Besides, there are other enforcement processes that would require compensation of the state and local

Policy evaluation goes through a series of questioning of how the policy identified and implemented the desired effect and the possibility of modifications to produce efficiencies. For example, during an evaluation, data collected is in constant use from previous monitoring. In monitoring, emphasis is placed on results and processes that are derived from procedural implementation. These two overarching components of a policy constantly work together to form any type of adjustments needed for policy effectiveness and efficiency (Capturing Experience Monitoring and Evaluation, 1988).

This paper is a review of Chapters 1, 2 and 3 in Patton, Sawicki, and Clark, (2012) third edition, Basic Methods of Policy Analysis and Planning. Chapter 1 discusses problem review, the analysis of difficult problems, the complexity of problems and how the decision makers will make their decisions (Patton, 2012, p. 2, 3). Chapter 2 examines the policy analysis process, the types of policy analysis, the role of the analyst and ethical considerations. Chapter 3 discusses the gathering of data, interviewing, statistical analysis and communicating results. This paper contains (1) an overview of the chapters, (2) summarize the key points, (3) summary of the reading, and (4) underscore some implications/applications for policy and practice at a local, state or national context.