Publication Type
Book Chapter
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
8-2018
Abstract
Public policies are the result of efforts made by governments to alter aspects of behavior—both that of their own agents and of society at large—in order to carry out some end or purpose. They are comprised of complex arrangements of policy goals and policy means matched through some decision-making process. These policymaking efforts can be more, or less, systematic in attempting to match ends and means in a logical fashion or can result from much less systematic or rational processes. ‘Policy design’ implies a knowledge-based process in which the choice of means or mechanisms through which policy goals are given effect follows a logical process of inference from known or learned relationships between means and outcomes. This includes design, in which means are selected in accordance with experience and knowledge, and non-design, in which principles and relationships are incorrectly or only partially articulated or understood. That is, policy decisions can be careful and deliberate in attempting to best resolve a problem or can be highly contingent and driven by situational logics. Decisions stemming from bargaining or opportunism can also be distinguished from those that result from careful analysis and assessment. This chapter considers both design modes and formulates a spectrum of policy formulation types between ‘design’ and ‘non-design’ to clarify the nature of each type and the likelihood of each type of policy process unfolding.
Discipline
Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation | Political Science
Research Areas
Political Science
Publication
Routledge Handbook of Policy Design
Editor
M. Howlett and I. Mukherjee
First Page
305
Last Page
315
ISBN
9781351252898
Identifier
10.4324/9781351252928-20
Publisher
Taylor and Francis
City or Country
London
Citation
HOWLETT, Michael, & MUKHERJEE, Ishani. (2018). Policy design and non-design: A continuum of formulation modalities. In Routledge Handbook of Policy Design (pp. 305-315). London: Taylor and Francis.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2760
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351252928-20