Public policy

Public policy is a formal proposal or a defined set of components—such as laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions—aimed at solving or addressing significant social problems. It is shaped by a guiding concept and is frequently carried out through programs. These policies affect many areas of life, including education, healthcare, employment, finance, economics, transportation, and society as a whole. The process of putting public policy into effect is called public administration. Public policy can be understood as the total of a government’s direct and indirect activities, and it has been defined in many different ways.

Public policies are created or enacted on behalf of the public, usually by a government. Sometimes non-state actors develop them, or they are produced in collaboration with communities or citizens, which may involve experts, scientists, engineers, stakeholders, or scientific data—or they may incorporate some of their results. Typically, policy-makers who are linked to currently elected politicians in democratic systems are the ones who make these policies. As a result, the policy process is a complex political process involving many participants: elected politicians, political party leaders, pressure groups, civil servants, publicly employed professionals, judges, non-governmental organizations, international agencies, academic experts, journalists, and even citizens who may view themselves as passive recipients of policy.

A common way to understand and engage with public policy is through a series of stages called the policy cycle. This cycle was first discussed by political scientist Harold Laswell in his 1956 book *The Decision Process: Seven Categories of Functional Analysis*. While the specific stages can vary, a basic sequence includes agenda setting, policy formulation, legitimation, implementation, and evaluation. This approach divides the policy process into stages, starting from when policymakers first consider a problem to when a policy is implemented and they assess its success before deciding what to do next.

Officials believe that policymakers are responsible for advancing the interests of various stakeholders. Policy design involves a conscious and deliberate effort to define policy goals and map them out in a practical way. Academics and experts in policy studies have created a range of tools and methods to assist with this task. Government action refers to the decisions, policies, and activities taken by governments, which can significantly affect individuals, organizations, and society. This action can take many forms, such as regulations, subsidies, taxes, and spending plans. The aim of government action is to achieve certain social or economic objectives, like promoting economic growth, reducing inequality, or protecting the environment.

**Varying conceptions of public policy**

Public policy can be understood in different ways, depending on the speaker’s or author’s purposes and the specific situation.

One key distinction is between those who see public policy primarily as ideas—principles and plans of action—and those who see it as a collection of empirical phenomena—the things that are actually done and their outcomes. The first view works well when the issue is relatively simple and clear, and the means of enactment are expected to be highly disciplined. However, when the matter is complex or contested, and intentions are confused or hidden, it may be impossible to define the policy ideas clearly. In such cases, it can be useful to identify a policy by what actually happens.

David Easton, in the United States during the 1950s, illustrated why he needed to broaden his concept of public policy beyond stated ideas. He noted that if an educational system’s formal policy forbids discrimination against Black people, but local school boards or administrators zone attendance areas so that Black students are segregated into a few schools, then both the impartial law and the discriminatory practices must be considered part of the policy. Easton described public policy as “a web of decisions and actions that allocates values.”

Other definitions that focus on a broad range of empirical phenomena include Paul Cairney’s, who called public policy “the sum total of government action from signals of intent to the final outcomes.”

An example of viewing public policy as ideas comes from Richard Titmuss, who defined it as “the principles that govern action directed towards given ends.” Titmuss’s perspective was particularly rooted in social contract ethics.

In 2020, Antonio Lassance defined public policy as “an institutionalized proposal to solve a central problem, guided by a conception.” Lassance’s perspective is based on a theory of change or program theory, which he believes can be tested empirically.

One of the most well-known and debated concepts of public policy is Thomas R. Dye’s, who stated that “public policy is whatever governments choose to do or not to do.” While widely used, this concept has been criticized as being empty. Dye himself admitted that his definition “discourages elaborate academic discussions of the definition of public policy—we say simply that public policy is whatever governments choose to do or not to do.”

From an institutionalist viewpoint, the foundation of public policy consists of national constitutional laws and regulations. Other foundational elements include judicial interpretations and regulations, which are usually authorized by legislation. Public policy is considered strong when it solves problems efficiently and effectively, supports governmental institutions and policies, and encourages active citizenship.