Samenvatting PPG deeltentamen 1: hoorcollege 1 t/m 6
Webcollege 1 PPG
Public policy: an introduction to the field
Why public policy?
Examples public policy in action:
Other examples of public policy:
Also of course Covid-19.
So: public policy is everywhere!!!
Much policy is needed to move around your city or town
Think about road signs, traffic lights and public lightning.
Without policy?
Life in the state of nature is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.
- Thomas Hobbes
,Policy helps us to:
- To set goals in public issues and invent solutions.
For example: to set up the European Green Deal.
- Allocate means to achieve solutions.
For example: stricter regulations on the industry, because the industry appears to be
one of the biggest polluters on climate change.
- Coordinate efforts to work on solutions.
For example: how are you collectively going to bring around change in the EU.
- Divide the tasks between governmental actors and non-governmental actors.
For example: what are they going to do about these issues? Interest groups, NGO’s,
private companies, consumers as an individual etc.
- Make government action predictable.
For example: public law.
- Influence behavioral change:
For example: large companies, but also consumers have to change their behavior. Like
meatless Monday, being a vegetarian etc.
Two perspectives on public policy
For example: Food safety
Steam meals 1: meat
Steam meals 2: fish
Steam meals 3: veggie
Every one of these meals contains products that come from allover the world.
So there are long production chains
Very obvious aspects of food safety:
For example the beans in your steam meal come from a small farmer in Spain he gives
them to a small transporting company they bring the beans to a distribution center they
bring it to a factory that makes the steam meals after that the steam meals go to a
supermarket
Less obvious aspects of food safety:
The expiration date
A label of for example the EFSA (European Food Safety Authority).
Food inspection; for example in a bakery. To see if the product is produced by the
norms.
A label with all the ingredients; with allergic reactions kept in mind.
Positivist take on policy making
Focus on facts and proof.
, o We expect inspection companies and the EFSA that they give us numbers as
proof of the safety of the food.
o Numbers and statistics are very important.
o The same is with COVID-19 at the moment; they decide policy based on how
many infections are added daily.
Bounded rationality
o Bounded rationality: cognitive limitations on the amount of information people
can process, it differs per person.
o Hence they have limited information at their disposal.
o Policy makers will simplify the choices.
For instance on food safety: should we get detailed food safety standards for
the industry or should we make open norms in which we can expect them to
self-regulate. Because there is so much information and details about food
safety. And do inspections on the maintenance of this.
Behave according to interest
o Actors behave according to self-interest.
o Company’s won’t do more than the minimum of the regulations, because if
you do more, it will cost you more money.
Institutional constraints
o You can make new rules/policy, but you have to be aware of the rules that
have been previously made. They have an influence on how much we can
change now.
o Policy making can only happen in a limited space.
Importance of resources
o Money
o Time
o Organizational capacity
Technocratic aspects prevail
o Technocracy can be seen as basing a lot on facts/numbers/statistics.
o Their not interested in political arguments based on values and believes, but
more in hard facts and numbers to substructure their policy.
Rely on scientific expertise
o Based on empirical/scientific research
Interested in causality
o You want to predict the influence and effects of your policy beforehand.
o You want to measure it afterwards, whether it had the effect you desired.
Constructivist take on policy making
Deborah Stone
Not one truth, fact, or proof
o Policy is paradoxical.
o Statistics or other kinds of proof may be differently interpreted by different
people, we don’t all share the same understanding.
o For example: risk assessments are important measures that help to increase
safety, but if the public becomes aware of these measures it may also increase
Webcollege 1 PPG
Public policy: an introduction to the field
Why public policy?
Examples public policy in action:
Other examples of public policy:
Also of course Covid-19.
So: public policy is everywhere!!!
Much policy is needed to move around your city or town
Think about road signs, traffic lights and public lightning.
Without policy?
Life in the state of nature is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.
- Thomas Hobbes
,Policy helps us to:
- To set goals in public issues and invent solutions.
For example: to set up the European Green Deal.
- Allocate means to achieve solutions.
For example: stricter regulations on the industry, because the industry appears to be
one of the biggest polluters on climate change.
- Coordinate efforts to work on solutions.
For example: how are you collectively going to bring around change in the EU.
- Divide the tasks between governmental actors and non-governmental actors.
For example: what are they going to do about these issues? Interest groups, NGO’s,
private companies, consumers as an individual etc.
- Make government action predictable.
For example: public law.
- Influence behavioral change:
For example: large companies, but also consumers have to change their behavior. Like
meatless Monday, being a vegetarian etc.
Two perspectives on public policy
For example: Food safety
Steam meals 1: meat
Steam meals 2: fish
Steam meals 3: veggie
Every one of these meals contains products that come from allover the world.
So there are long production chains
Very obvious aspects of food safety:
For example the beans in your steam meal come from a small farmer in Spain he gives
them to a small transporting company they bring the beans to a distribution center they
bring it to a factory that makes the steam meals after that the steam meals go to a
supermarket
Less obvious aspects of food safety:
The expiration date
A label of for example the EFSA (European Food Safety Authority).
Food inspection; for example in a bakery. To see if the product is produced by the
norms.
A label with all the ingredients; with allergic reactions kept in mind.
Positivist take on policy making
Focus on facts and proof.
, o We expect inspection companies and the EFSA that they give us numbers as
proof of the safety of the food.
o Numbers and statistics are very important.
o The same is with COVID-19 at the moment; they decide policy based on how
many infections are added daily.
Bounded rationality
o Bounded rationality: cognitive limitations on the amount of information people
can process, it differs per person.
o Hence they have limited information at their disposal.
o Policy makers will simplify the choices.
For instance on food safety: should we get detailed food safety standards for
the industry or should we make open norms in which we can expect them to
self-regulate. Because there is so much information and details about food
safety. And do inspections on the maintenance of this.
Behave according to interest
o Actors behave according to self-interest.
o Company’s won’t do more than the minimum of the regulations, because if
you do more, it will cost you more money.
Institutional constraints
o You can make new rules/policy, but you have to be aware of the rules that
have been previously made. They have an influence on how much we can
change now.
o Policy making can only happen in a limited space.
Importance of resources
o Money
o Time
o Organizational capacity
Technocratic aspects prevail
o Technocracy can be seen as basing a lot on facts/numbers/statistics.
o Their not interested in political arguments based on values and believes, but
more in hard facts and numbers to substructure their policy.
Rely on scientific expertise
o Based on empirical/scientific research
Interested in causality
o You want to predict the influence and effects of your policy beforehand.
o You want to measure it afterwards, whether it had the effect you desired.
Constructivist take on policy making
Deborah Stone
Not one truth, fact, or proof
o Policy is paradoxical.
o Statistics or other kinds of proof may be differently interpreted by different
people, we don’t all share the same understanding.
o For example: risk assessments are important measures that help to increase
safety, but if the public becomes aware of these measures it may also increase
