Policy Rationale Discussion

Learning Goal: I’m working on a political science discussion question and need a sample draft to help me learn.

This week, we will use homelessness as a way to consider the actors and roles in public policy. Respond to one or more of the following questions in 200+ words. Use this week’s required reading to support your discussion. Cite your sources.

Required Reading Chapters 5-8 of Weimer, D. and Vining, A. (2017).Policy Analysis: Concepts and Practice(6thed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.ISBN: 1138216518.

• Who are the key players that influence homelessness-related policy?
• What legislative committees at the local/state/federal level might take on the issue of homelessness, and what role could they play?
• How would public opinion and the media influence the creation and implementation of homeless policies?
• What charities or foundations might fund social services for the homelessness, such as soup kitchens or shelter? Would these charities or foundations support advocacy efforts to ameliorate homelessness?
• Should a homeless shelter’s mission statement or activities include advocacy with our on behalf of the disadvantaged population?

  1. Introduction

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     Classic approaches to classifying rationales for public policy begin with the concept of a perfect competitive economy, i.e., efficiency in both production and consumption. This idealized model produces an acceptable allocation of goods where public policy is unnecessary. Economic reality and human behavior, however, rarely adhere to the assumptions upon which this model is founded. Violations of these assumptions result in disruptions — some expected and some unexpected — to the equilibrium of the market. The need to address such limitations of the competitive framework, and their resultant consequences, represent the traditional rationales for public policies. This week’s readings explore the causes of these limitations and ways in which public policy can (and sometimes can’t) mitigate the challenges they pose.

Learning Objectives

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1. Understand and describe the conditions of classic market failures, including public goods, externalities, natural monopolies and information asymmetries.
2. Describe the difference between public and private goods.
3. Identify examples of positive and negative externalities.
4. Understand and describe the conditions that result in natural monopolies.
5. Understand and identify information asymmetries.
6. Understand and describe limitations of the competitive framework beyond classic market failures.
7. Describe the efficiency implications of market failures and other limitations of the competitive framework.
8. Identify substantive values other than efficiency.
9. Understand and describe how the choice of distributional values can help distinguish among policy alternatives considered and how individuals prioritize and evaluate policy goals.
10. Understand and identify categories of government failure.
11. Understand inherent problems in direct democracy.
12. Understand inherent problems in representative government.

To Read

• Weimer & Vining, Chs.5-8