Chapter 3: Social Welfare Policy Analysis

Front 1

Policy Analysis Outline

Back 1

1. Delineation and Overview of the Policy under Analysis

2. Historical Analysis

3. Social Analysis

4. Economic Analysis

5. Political Analysis

6. Policy/Program Evaluation

7. Current Proposals for Policy Return

Front 2

Policy Analysis: Defined

Back 2

Impossible to define due to being broad and general and has different meanings depending on who is using it and the context in which it is used.

Front 3

Approaches to Policy Analysis

Back 3

1. Academic Social Research

2. Applied Policy Research

3. Social Planning

4. Agency Planning/Policy Management

5. Journalistic

6. Practitioner Policy Analysis

7. Citizen Policy Analysis

Front 4

Methods of Policy Analysis: Descriptive Analysis

Back 4

Can be subdivided into four groups:

1. Content Analysis

2. Choice Analysis

3. Comparative Analysis

4. Historical Analysis

Front 5

Descriptive Analysis: Content Analysis

Back 5

An empirical description of an existing policy in terms of its intentions, problem definition, goals, and means employed for achieving the goals. (36)

Front 6

Descriptive Analysis: Choice Analysis

Back 6

A systematic process of looking at the options available to planners for dealing with a social welfare problem. (37)

Front 7

Choice Analysis: Bases of Allocations

Back 7

1. Bases of Allocations: Focuses on two distinctions; Universal and Selective Provision. Universal seeks to make benefits available to an entire population while selective seeks to provide benefits to individuals based on economic need. (38)

Front 8

Choice Analysis: Types of Benefits

Back 8

The two types of benefits are 'in-cash' and 'in-kind'.

1. In-Cash: Benefits that are credited with allowing the recipient to maintain some sense of choice and control, a feature held to be important both in a democracy and a market economy. (Unemployment checks, tax credits, and exemptions.)

2. In-Kind: Actual goods or services that can be seen as undermining an individual's dignity and sense of responsibility.

(38)

Vouchers act as a combination of both. (39)

Front 9

Choice Analysis: Delivery Structure

Back 9

Relates to the details of how services or benefits will be delivered. (40)

Front 10

Choice Analysis: Financial Benefits

Back 10

Decision on how benefits will be financed. Can be done through a variety of ways: Taxation, voluntary contributions, or fees. (41)

Front 11

Descriptive Analysis: Comparative Analysis

Back 11

Involves systematically comparing policies across two or more settings. The most common form is cross-national analysis: The policy of one nation is compared with policies of other nations regarding the same problem. Others involve analysis across states and/or communities. (44)

Front 12

Descriptive Analysis: Historical Analysis

Back 12

Is based on the assumption that current policies can be fully understood only if we have a thorough understanding of their evolution. Views policy as patterns of behavior by the state and private groups extending over a long period of time. (45)

Front 13

Process Analysis

Back 13

Less concerned with policy content than with how a policy comes into being. Focuses on the interactions of the many political actors representing those likely to be affected either positively or negatively by a policy.(45)

Front 14

Evaluation

Back 14

Due to increased skepticism of social welfare policies, demand for evaluation of those policies has increased. (46)

Front 15

Evaluation: Logical Evaluation

Back 15

Looks at the content of a policy and assesses its internal rigor and consistency. Evaluates on three dimensions; internal consistency of a policy's multiple goals; assessing the consistency between a policy's goals and the means for achieving those goals, and assessing the difference intended and unintended consequences(46-47)

Front 16

Evaluation: Quantitative Evaluation

Back 16

Due to large amount of money needed for social welfare programs, rigorous data-based evaluation of whether they are working is necessary. Comprise of two evaluations. Effectiveness evaluations and efficiency evaluations. (47)

Front 17

Ethical Evaluation

Back 17

Social welfare policy often deals with issues on the premise of being good or bad, right or wrong and should and should not. Ethical evaluation is important but due to differing value systems they are usually controversial. (48-49)