Now in its eighth edition, B. Guy Peters’s trusted text once again provides a meticulous overview of the process behind—and the current state of— American public policy. In addition to balanced and comprehensive coverage of governmental structures and policymaking procedures, Peters addresses an array of specific policy issues as well as cost-benefit and ethical analysis.

Brief “background” sections now start each issues chapter, providing readers with additional context before they dive into current problems and policies. In addition to an in-depth look at economic policy in light of the current financial turmoil and recession, this revision includes valuable new material on the politics of international treaties and climate control and devotes further attention to foreign policy. In a brand new chapter Peters accessibly explains approaches to the policymaking process, including institutional, economic, constructivist, and stages models, along with concepts such as the advocacy coalition framework, bounded rationality, and incrementalism. Updated graphics, tables, and charts throughout ensure that students have access to the latest data in the field, while new photos illustrate important points.

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PART 1. THE NATURE OF PUBLIC POLICY

1. What Is Public Policy?
Defining Public Policy
The Instruments of Public Policy
The Environment of Public Policy

2. The Structure of Policymaking in American Government
Federalism
Separation of Powers
Subgovernments Public and Private
The Size and Shape of the Public Sector

3. Explaining Policy Choices
Power and Policymaking
The Policy Process: The Stages Model
Institutional Models of Policy
Advocacy Coalition Framework
Policy Causes Politics
Bounded Rationality, Multiple Streams, and Incrementalism
The Private Sector, Iron Triangles, and Networks
Optimal Decision-Making
Constructivist Models

PART 2. THE MAKING OF PUBLIC POLICY

4. Agenda Setting and Public Policy
Agenda Setting
Kinds of Agendas Who Sets Agendas?
From Problem to Issue: How to Get Problems on the Agenda
Policy Formulation Decision Analysis

5. Legitimating Policy Choices
Legislative Legitimation
Regulations and the Administrative Process
The Courts Popular Legitimation

6. Organizations and Implementation
Dramatis Personae
Implementation
The Organizational Setting

7. Budgeting: Allocation and Public Policy
Characteristics of the Federal Budget
The Budget Cycle
Problems in the Budgetary Process
Reforming Budgeting: Large-Scale Approaches in the 1960s and 1970s
From Scalpels to Axes: Budget Reform from the 1980s to the 2000s
Is Budget Change Its Own Reward?

8. Evaluation and Policy Change
Problems in Evaluating Public Programs
Policy Change

PART 3. SUBSTANTIVE POLICY ISSUES

9. Economic Policy
Background
The Goals of Economic Policy
The Instruments of Economic Policy

10. Tax Policy
Background
Public Opinion and Taxation
Choices in Tax Policy
The Politics of Tax Reform

11. Health Care Policies
Background
Problems in Health Care
Public Programs in Health Care
Health Care Regulation
The Pursuit of National Health Insurance

12. Income Maintenance: Social Security and Welfare
Background
Social Insurance
Means-Tested Programs
The Persistence of Poverty in the United States

13. Educational Policy
Background
The Federal Government’s Role in Education
Issues of Educational Policy

14. Energy and the Environment
Background
Energy: Problems and Policies
Energy Sources
Policy Options
Environmental Policies
Implementation of Environmental Controls

15. Protective Policies: Defense and Law Enforcement
Background
Defense Policy
Problems of Defense Policy
Law Enforcement
Issues in Law Enforcement Policy

16. Culture Wars in American Politics: Regulating Social Life
Background
Abortion and Reproductive Rights
Gay Rights: Politics Comes Out of the Closet
The Separation of Church and State: School Prayer and Other Issues

PART 4. ANALYZING PUBLIC POLICY

17. Policy Analysis: Cost-Benefit Analysis and Ethical Analysis
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Ethical Analysis of Public Policy
Summary

“In American Public Policy, Peters combines both the theoretical and practical aspects of public policy. He is concise and detailed, with specific examples to help students at any level understand the maze that is public policy. It is a great text for any public policy class.”

“American Public Policy deftly navigates readers through the theory of public policy and makes that theory come alive with richly detailed examples from the policy realm. It’s this combination that distinguishes Peters’ work from that of the competition.”

“In American Public Policy: Promise and Performance, B. Guy Peters has offered the academic community a well-developed and highly useful approach to the study of public policy, combining as it does consistent analytical treatment of each phase of the policymaking process and a collection of cutting-edge case studies in specific policy areas. The author’s easy prose and the absence of jargon lend themselves to ready engagement of the subject matter on the part of my students. As a user of this text for over five years, I consider it a premiere text in the field.”

B. Guy Peters is Maurice Falk Professor of American Government at the University of Pittsburgh. He has written extensively in the areas of public administration and public policy, both for the United States and comparatively. Among his recent publications are the Handbook of Public Administration and The Quest for Control: Politicization of the Public Service.

Online student resources include chapter summaries, interactive quizzes, and annotated web links for further research.

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