The study of comparative public policy reveals the intensely political nature of policy choices. While policy analysts often look to policy successes and failures outside their borders to draw valuable lessons and insights, cultural, economic, political, and institutional conditions vary from country to country and strongly affect how policy analysis is ultimately used. By combining a conceptual discussion of policy making with an examination of seven specific policy areas, Jessica Adolino and Charles Blake show how politics—in the realm of the environment, education, taxation, economics, immigration, health care, and social welfare—shapes policy choices.

The second edition of Comparing Public Policies has been revised and updated to reflect the most recent political and policy developments. This new edition expands coverage of the internationalization of domestic policy making by including a European Union case study in each issue area, along with further discussion of the role of international interest groups in the policy process.

The seven policy chapters have been revised and updated to examine current issues in the United States, Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and the European Union, such as:

• the heightened calls for immigration policy reform
• the return to higher budget deficits in several countries
• the efforts to lower tax rates in countries with falling expenditures and in countries with rising spending levels
• the often unsuccessful attempts to control increasing health care costs in countries with aging populations
• the spirited debate over the future role of the welfare state in an increasingly globalized economy
• the, at times, divergent education reform debates regarding the role of assessment and calls for decentralization
• the uneven environmental performance in the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions

Chapters include analyses of cross­national trends—past and present—and a final chapter reexamines the internationalization of public policy in industrialized countries. Useful pedagogical features have been incorporated throughout the text, including “In Depth” boxes that offer detailed discussion of the political process or analytical techniques, and “Country At-a-Glance” boxes that provide quick reference to political institutions. A wealth of recent data is displayed in numerous tables and a glossary gives students a practical guide to terminology.

ISBN: 978-1-93311-678-5

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The second edition of Comparing Public Policies has been revised and updated to reflect the most recent political and policy developments. This new edition expands coverage of the internationalization of domestic policy making by including a European Union case study in each issue area, along with further discussion of the role of international interest groups in the policy process.

The seven policy chapters have been revised and updated to examine current issues in the United States, Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and the European Union, such as:

• the heightened calls for immigration policy reform
• the return to higher budget deficits in several countries
• the efforts to lower tax rates in countries with falling expenditures and in countries with rising spending levels
• the often unsuccessful attempts to control increasing health care costs in countries with aging populations
• the spirited debate over the future role of the welfare state in an increasingly globalized economy
• the, at times, divergent education reform debates regarding the role of assessment and calls for decentralization
• the uneven environmental performance in the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions

Chapters include analyses of cross­national trends—past and present—and a final chapter reexamines the internationalization of public policy in industrialized countries. Useful pedagogical features have been incorporated throughout the text, including “In Depth” boxes that offer detailed discussion of the political process or analytical techniques, and “Country At-a-Glance” boxes that provide quick reference to political institutions. A wealth of recent data is displayed in numerous tables and a glossary gives students a practical guide to terminology.

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Preface

An Introduction to Comparative Public Policy
The Increasing Internationalization of Public Policy
The Organization of This Book

1. The Policy Process
The Study of the Policy Process
The Policy Process Revisited

2. Theories of Policy Making
The Cultural School
The Economic School
The Political School
The Institutional School
An Eclectic Approach to Examining Policy Theories

3. Political and Economic Dynamics in Industrialized Countries
Social Cleavages
Interest Groups
Political Parties and Party Systems
Voting Behavior
Electoral Systems
Executive-Legislative Relations
Intergovernmental Relations
The Bureaucracy
The Judiciary
Economic Dynamics

4. The Policy-making Context
United States
Japan
Germany
France
The United Kingdom
Italy
The European Union

5. Immigration Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

6. Fiscal Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

7. Taxation Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

8. Health Care Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

9. Social Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

10. Education Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

11. Environmental Policy
Common Policy Problems
Major Policy Options
Explaining Policy Dynamics
International Policy Making
Case Studies
Cross-National Trends

12. Conclusion
Contemporary Trends
Learning Lessons by Comparing Policies

Glossary
References

Jessica R. Adolino is professor of political science at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, where she teaches courses on comparative politics, European politics, and international affairs. Her research interests primarily lie in the area of British politics. She published an extensive study of immigration and ethnic politics, Ethnic Minorities, Electoral Politics and Political Integration in Britain, in 1998. She is currently studying the political dynamics of European integration in the United Kingdom.

Charles H. Blake is professor of political science at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, where he teaches comparative politics, comparative public policy, and research methods. His research on the political economy of upper-income and middle-income societies has been published in a variety of journals including Comparative Political Studies, Democratization, and the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, among others. The second edition of his Politics in Latin America: The Quests for Development, Liberty, and Governance will be published in 2008.