Introduction: The importance of policy design: Effective processes, tools and outcomes

Publication Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

8-2018

Abstract

Design thinking has the potential to greatly improve the ways that policymakers go about the work of problem definition and mechanism design. For decades, policy analysts have been encouraged to understand the day-to-day experiences of the clients of government services and those delivering such services. By doing so, they can begin to devise policies that will contribute to improved outcomes. This chapter clarifies the essence of design thinking and its applicability to policy development. Five design thinking strategies are discussed, all of which have lengthy histories as social science methodologies. They are: (1) environmental scanning; (2) participant observation; (3) open-to-learning conversations; (4) mapping; and (5) sensemaking. Recent examples from Australia and New Zealand are used to illustrate how these strategies have been incorporated into policymaking efforts. The chapter concludes by discussing how design thinking might be more broadly applied in policymaking in the international arena. Consideration is given to the rise of policy innovation and design laboratories and their potential to support the integration of design thinking into mainstream policy analytic work.

Discipline

Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation | Political Science

Research Areas

Political Science

Publication

Routledge Handbook of Policy Design

Editor

M. Howlett and I. Mukherjee

ISBN

9781351252898

Publisher

Taylor and Francis

City or Country

London

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