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1. Public Policy and Politics

Study

Public policy impacts just about everything in our lives, both directly and indirectly. Chapter 1 provides a foundation and orientation to vocabulary and concepts for the rest of the text; it clarifies basic concepts and discusses why we should be aware of public policy decisions. Because public policy is not made in a vacuum, this chapter explores the social, economic, political, governing, and cultural contexts that affect the development and implementation of policy decisions. It then discusses the political, moral/ethical, and market failure rationales for government intervention in detail, which informs us of when and why governments choose to act. Finally, the chapter introduces the concept of policy analysis, presenting some criteria for analyzing public policy: effectiveness, efficiency, and equity.