Handbook of public policy analysis : [electronic resource] theory, politics, and methods / Edited by Frank Fischer; Gerald Miller; Mara S Sidney.

Cover -- Front cover -- Contributors -- Contents -- Introduction -- Part I: Historical Perspectives -- Chapter 1. The Policy Sciences at the Crossroads -- Chapter 2. Promoting the Policy Orientation: Lasswell in Context -- Chapter 3. Public Policy, Social Science, and the State: An Historical Perspective -- Part II: Policy Processes -- Chapter 4. Theories of the Policy Cycle -- Chapter 5. Agenda Setting in Public Policy -- Chapter 6. Policy Formulation: Design and Tools -- Chapter 7. Implementing Public Policy -- Chapter 8. Do Policies Determine Politics? -- Part III: Policy Politics, Advocacy, and Expertise -- Chapter 9. A Guide to the Advocacy Coalition Framework -- Chapter 10. Policy Communities -- Chapter 11. Public Policy Analysis and Think Tanks -- Part IV: Policy Decision Making: Rationality, Networks and Learning -- Chapter 12. Rationality in Policy Decision Making -- Chapter 13. Rational Choice in Public Policy: The Theory in Critical Perspective -- Chapter 14. Taking Stock of Policy Networks: Do They Matter? -- Chapter 15. Theories of Policy Learning: Agency, Structure, and Change -- Part V: Deliberative Policy Analysis: Argumentation, Rhetoric, and Narratives -- Chapter 16. Deliberative Policy Analysis as Practical Reason: Integrating Empirical and Normative Arguments -- Chapter 17. Rhetoric in Policy Making: Between Logos, Ethos, and Pathos -- Chapter 18. Narrative Policy Analysis -- Part VI: Comparative, Cultural, and Ethical Perspectives -- Chapter 19. Comparative Public Policy -- Chapter 20. Applied Cultural Theory: Tool for Policy Analysis -- Chapter 21. Ethical Issues and Public Policy -- Chapter 22. Public Policy and Democratic Citizenship: What Kinds of Citizenship Does Policy Promote? -- Part VII: Quantitatively Oriented Policy Methods -- Chapter 23. Quantitative Methods for Policy Analysis -- Chapter 24. The Use (and Misuse) of Surveys in Policy Analysis -- Chapter 25. Social Experiments and Public Policy -- Chapter 26. Policy Evaluation and Evaluation Research -- Part VIII: Qualutative Policy Analysis: Interpretation, Meaning, and Content -- Chapter 27. Qualitative-Interpretive Methods in Policy Research -- Chapter 28. Qualitative Research and Public Policy -- Chapter 29. Interpretation and Intention in Policy Analysis -- Chapter 30. Context-Sensitive Policy Methods -- Part IX: Policy Decisions Techniques -- Chapter 31. Benefit Analysis -- Chapter 32. Environmental Impact Assessment: Between Bureaucratic Process and Social Learning -- Chapter 33. Technology Assessment as Policy Analysis: From Expert Advice to Participatory Approaches -- Chapter 34. Public Policy Mediation: From Argument to Collaboration -- Part X: Country Perspectives -- Chapter 35. Policy Analysis in Britain -- Chapter 36. The Evolution of Policy Analysis in the Netherlands -- Chapter 37. Policy Analysis and Evaluation in Sweden: Discovering the Limits of the Rationalistic Paradigm -- Chapter 38. The Policy Turn in German Political Science -- Chapter 39. Policy Analysis in India: Research Bases and Discursive Practices -- Chapter 40. Korean Policy Analysis: From Economic Efficiency to Public Participation -- Index -- Back cover -- Last Page.

The study of public policy and the methods of policy analysis are among the most rapidly developing areas in the social sciences. Policy analysis has emerged to provide a better understanding of the policymaking process and to supply decision makers with reliable policy-relevant knowledge about pressing economic and social problems. Presenting a broad, comprehensive perspective, the Handbook of Public Policy Analysis: Theory, Politics, and Methods covers the historical development of policy analysis, its role in the policy process, and empirical methods. The handbook considers the theory generated by these methods and the normative and ethical issues surrounding their practice. Written by leading experts in the field, this book- Deals with the basic origins and evolution of public policy Examines the stages of the policy-making process Identifies political advocacy and expertise in the policy process Focuses on rationality in policy decision-making and the role of policy networks and learning Details argumentation, rhetoric, and narratives Explores the comparative, cultural, and ethical aspects of public policy Explains primary quantitative-oriented analytical methods employed in policy research Addresses the qualitative sides of policy analysis Discusses tools used to refine policy choices Traces the development of policy analysis in selected national contexts The Handbook of Public Policy Analysis: Theory, Politics, and Methods describes the theoretical debates that have recently defined the field, including the work of postpositivist, interpretivist, and social constructionist scholars. This book also explores the interplay between empirical and normative analysis, a crucial issue running through contemporary debates.