Chapter 17 Poli Sci Final Dr. Enterline

Front 1

public policy

Back 1

an intentional course of action followed by government in dealing with some problem or matter of concern

Front 2

elite theory

Back 2

chose few or elite make all the decision in society

Front 3

bureaucratic theory

Back 3

all institutions, governmental and nongovernmental, have fallen under the control of a large and ever growing bureaucracy

Front 4

why are bureaucrats empowered?

Back 4

because they have expertise and competence

Front 5

interest group theory

Back 5

interest groups control the governmental process

Front 6

What does notes interest group theorist David Truman believe?

Back 6

there are so many potential pressure points in the three branches of the fed. govt as well as the state level that interest groups can step in on any number of competeing sides

Front 7

pluralist perspective

Back 7

political resources in the US are scattered so widely that no single elite group could ever gain monopoly control over any substantial area of policy

Front 8

the policy making process is seen as

Back 8

a sequence of stages or functional activities

Front 9

public policies do not just happen; rather, they are

Back 9

the products of a predictable pattern of events

Front 10

the first step in policy making

Back 10

problems must be recognized and defined

Front 11

problems give rise to

Back 11

demands for relief, often through governmental action

Front 12

second step in policy making

Back 12

agenda setting

getting the problem places on the governmental agenda

Front 13

third step in policy making

Back 13

policy formulation

formulation of alternatives for dealing with the problem

Front 14

fourth step in policy making

Back 14

policy adoption

involves formal enactment or approval of an alternative

Front 15

fifth step in policy making

Back 15

budgeting

provides financial resources to carry out the approved alternative (which can now be called a policy)

Front 16

sixth step in policy making

Back 16

policy implementation

the actual administration or application of the policy to its targets

Front 17

last step in policy making

Back 17

policy evaluation

to determine the policy's actual accomplishments, consequences, or shortcomings

Front 18

stages of public policy process explained with the example of

Back 18

acid rain

Front 19

all disturbing conditions to not automatically become problems

what must happen in order for a condition to become a problem?

Back 19

there must be some criterion - a standard or value - that leads people to believe that the condition does not have to be accepted and that it is a problems that the government can deal with effectively and appropriately

ex: natural disasters such as earthquakes prob wont make it as a problem, but the human distress and property destruction that it causes is something that the govt can deal with

Front 20

give an example of how perceptions toward government responsibilities change over time

Back 20

care of children at one point was considered the sole responsibility of parents, but then because of child abuse, it became a national problem and it was dealt with by the national government

Front 21

TRUE OR FALSE

usually there is NOT a single, agreed-on definition of a problem

Back 21

true


how the problem is defined helps determine what kind of action to take. this is why there are often political struggles at this stage

Front 22

agenda

Back 22

a set of issues to be discussed or given attention

Front 23

two basic agenda types in the area of public policy

Back 23

1. systemic agenda

2. governmental or institutional agenda

Front 24

systemic agenda

Back 24

a discussion agenda that comprises all issues that are commonly perceived as meriting public attention

all public issues that are viewed as requiring governmental attention; a discussion agenda

Front 25

governmental (institutional) agenda

Back 25

includes only problems to which legislators or other public officials feel obliged to devote active and serious attention

the changing list of issues to which the governments believe they should address themselves

Front 26

when do issues emerge

Back 26

when disagreement exists over what should be about a problem

Front 27

the _________ is an important agenda-setter for Congress

Back 27

the PRESIDENT is an important agenda-setter for Congress

Front 28

______________ are major actors and initiators in the AGENDA SETTING PROCESS

Back 28

INTEREST GROUPS are major actors and initiators in the AGENDA SETTING PROCESS

interest groups and their lobbyists frequently ask Congress to legislate on problems of special concern to them

Front 29

agenda setting

Back 29

the constant process of forming the list of issues to be addressed by the government

Front 30

under what circumstances can problems secure agenda status?

Back 30

crisis, natural disaster, or some other extraordinary event

ex: the 9/11 attacks

Front 31

what types of people can push issues onto the congressional agenda

Back 31

individual private citizens

members of congress

other officials, acting as policy entrepreneurs

Front 32

TRUE OR FALSE

political changes will NOT contribute to agenda setting

Back 32

false!

political changes WILL!!!! contribute to agenda setting

Front 33

why is agenda setting a competitive process?

Back 33

congress does not have the time or the money to take on all probs and issues

Front 34

policy formulation

Back 34

the crafting of appropriate and acceptable proposed courses of action to ameliorate or resolve public problems

Front 35

the three different forms the that formulation can take

Back 35

1. routine formulation

2. analogous formulation

3. creative formulation

Front 36

routine formulation

Back 36

a repetitive and essentially changeless process of reformulating

Front 37

analogous formulation

Back 37

handles new problems by drawing on experience with similar problems in the past

Front 38

creative formulation

Back 38

involves attempts to develop new or unprecedented proposals that represent a departure from existing practices and that will better resolve a problem

Front 39

policy formulation may be undertaken by various players in the policy process including

Back 39

the president

presidential aides

agency officials

specially appointed task forces and commissions

interest groups

private research organizations (or "think tanks")

legislators and their staffs

Front 40

policy adoption

Back 40

approval of a policy proposal by the people with requisite authority. this approval gives the policy legal force.

Front 41

what is required in order for a policy to be adopted

Back 41

the building of majority coalitions to secure the enactment of legislation

a majority is needed to clear a bill through obstacles;
a series of majorities is needed for congressional policy adoption

Front 42

what can be done to a bill to secure the needed votes

Back 42

it may be watered down or modified at each of these decision points

Front 43

the adoption of major legislation requires (3 things)

Back 43

1. negotiation
2. bargaining
3. compromise

Front 44

legislation on a controversial matter may take

Back 44

years or even decades to secure enactment

Front 45

important consequences of the tortuous nature of congressional policy adoption

Back 45

1. complex legislation may require substantial periods of time to pass

2. the legislation passed is often incremental, making only limited or marginal changes in existing policy

3. legislation is frequently written in general or ambiguous language

Front 46

problem with ambiguous language

Back 46

provides considerable discretion to the people who implement the law and also leave them in doubt as to its original purposes

Front 47

most policies require _____ to be carried out

Back 47

most policies require MONEY to be carried out

Front 48

where does the funding for most policies and agencies come from?

Back 48

the funding for most policies and agencies comes from the BUDGETARY PROCESS

Front 49

how can a policy be nullified?

Back 49

by refusal to fund


(other policies or programs often suffer from inadequate funding)

Front 50

budgetary process gives the president and Congress a chance to

Back 50

review the govt's many policies and programs

Front 51

what can be a powerful tool for congressional committee chairs

Back 51

having the potential to curb funding

Front 52

policy implementation

Back 52

the process of carrying out public policies, most of which are implemented by administrative agencies

Front 53

the three techniques used by administrative agencies to implement policies within their jurisdiction

Back 53

1. authoritative
2. incentive
3. capacity
4. hortatory

Front 54

authoritative techniques

Back 54

rests on the notion that people
s actions must be directed or restrained by government in order to prevent or eliminate activities or products that are unsafe, unfair, evil, or immoral

Front 55

incentive techniques

Back 55

encourages people to act in their own best interest by offering payoffs or financial inducements to get them to comply with public policies

Front 56

capacity techniques

Back 56

provides people with information, education, raining, or resources that will enable them to participate in desired activities.

Front 57

hortatory techniques

Back 57

encourages people to comply with policy by appealing to people's "better instincts" in an effort to get them to act in desired ways.

Front 58

policy evaluation

Back 58

the process of determining whether a course of action is achieving its intended goals

Front 59

important players in the policy evaluation process

Back 59

1. congressional committees

2. presidential commissions

3. administrative agencies

4. university researchers

5. private research organizations

6. the GAO (General Accountability Office)

Front 60

evaluation research and studies can _________________________ and thus restart the policy process

Back 60

evaluation research and studies can STIMULATE ATTEMPTS TO MODIFY OR TERMINATE POLICIES and thus restart the policy process

Front 61

in the early history of the country, when the nation experienced economic downturns, what did people rely on

Back 61

belt tightening and private charities

NO GOVERNMENTAL INTERVENTION

Front 62

in the late 19th century, how did this attitude change and why?

Back 62

farmers and rural Americans sought help from the government to help protect them from falling prices and exploitation by railroads

the severe economic depression of the mid 1890s led many to reassess their attitude about the govt's responsibility to protect Americans from calamity (caused people to accept and and even to expect government intervention)