Suchergebnisse

The author considers the rationale for public consultation -- identifying some of its innovative devices as well as some of its problems -- & its impact on policy making, arguing that this particular approach moves away from elitism. The paper also addresses the impact of public opinion polling in public policy & explores factors that influence the values & opinions held by the public. References. D. Miller

Examines the impact of social movement organizations (SMOs) & interest groups on public policy, arguing that their influence is constrained by electoral competition & limits on the ability of citizens/legislators to address multiple issues at the same time. Legislators pay attention to the wishes of the majority of their constituents, & SMOs cannot have a direct impact on policy if they are in conflict with the majority over issues the public cares about. However, SMOs can directly influence policy on issues the public is not particularly interested in, & indirectly influence policy by relating information to elected officials & administrative agencies, as well as by working to change the public's policy preferences or the intensity of their concerns. An examination of the activities of SMOs & interest groups in the context of theories of democracy leads to the conclusion that there is no theoretical justification for distinguishing between them; hence, their abilities to impact public policy are roughly the same. J. Lindroth

There are many ethical dimensions of public policy. Public policy as actions to solve the collective problems includes directly or indirectly making ethical judgments. Public policy takes into account reconciliation of conflicting interests of individuals, groups, and organizations which is based on the values agreeing which influences on the objectives, principles, and styles of policy implementation. Ethical judgments about selecting more and less important as well as more positive problem solutions are present on all stages of policy cycle.

"This chapter reviews research on the influence of the media on legislation and public policy. After reflecting on why politicians react to media coverage at all, the chapter mainly focusses on political agenda-setting, but also goes beyond this to come to a broader view on the role of the media in the policy process. In order to do so, the chapter takes a dose look at how media define, Frame and amplify issues or constrain the political agenda and how this impacts political decision making. It is argued that the media link together relevant actors including the public and make it possible that they respond to each other on a limited number of core issues. In addition, the media have the ability to forte politicians to react and take a position in such a way that they can accelerate or rather decelerate the policy process. The chapter closes with a call for more studies trying to understand the complex interaction of media and political decision making." (publisher's description)

Examines the purpose & influence of think tanks in public policy making in Canada, particularly during the constitutional conferences of 1992. The background information on the events leading up to the creation of the constitutional conferences provides context to the involvement of think tanks in the debate. The characteristics & roles of think tanks, including their functions & efforts to reach certain audiences, are scrutinized. The impact of think tanks on public policy is assessed. L. Collins Leigh

This paper analyses the quality of governance and public administration as key determinants for successful functioning within the European Union (EU). A comparison between Croatia and future and present EU members is made, according to separate governance indicators (rule of law, democracy, corruption, political stability, government effectiveness) and experience in reform of the public administration. The paper shows that Croatia by all quality of governance indicators, particularly with respect to the rule of law, lags considerably behind the EU and the Central Europe candidate countries. The low level of the rule of law in combination with an inadequate public administration is potentially the greatest obstacle in Croatia's accession to the EU as well as in the creation of sustainable economic and social development.

Institution building is crucial for successful integration into the European Union (EU). Through the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA), Croatia bound itself to strengthen institutions at all levels in the area of the administration, priority areas being protection of competition and state aid. According to the demands that the EU has made on the public administrations of the accession countries in the pre-accession period, we shall identify the criteria for membership. We shall define the level of the fulfilment of conditions for membership and the measures that should be carried out during the process of the reform in Croatia by a comparative analysis of the state of affairs in Croatia, the candidates and the EU members. The main conclusion is that institutional weakness in Croatia is the outcome of failure to define the priorities and the timetable for the implementation of given reforms.

The author presents a case study on the way the UK government handled BSE, with a specific focus on the problems that resulted due to scientific uncertainties that accompanied the attempt to formulate a response to this outbreak. References. D. Miller

"This chapter deals with public understanding of uncertainty in climate science and policy taking a closer look at how laypeople perceive and make sense of the non-knowledge about the topic. Based on original research with Swedish focus groups, among others, the authors conclude that the uncertainty about causes and consequences might not be the most pressing issues. Rather they see that the questions regarding the individual responsibility to mitigate climate change and the effectiveness of responses to climate change can be even more confusing. An implication for global change management would be to address more systematically the blindspots related to effectiveness of policies and measures tackling climate change." (author's abstract)

Der Autor gibt einen Situationsbericht über die Archivierung von Daten der öffentlichen Administration der BRD in maschinenlesbarer Form. Die computerisierte Datensicherung ist in der BRD noch nicht weit fortgeschritten, sowohl was die Ausstattung mit Computern angeht, wie auch in Hinsicht auf das archivierte Material. Der Autor lehnt aus Gründen des Datenschutzes, aber auch aus prinzipiellen Erwägungen eine Perspektive ab, die die Datenerfassung und Archivierung aus dem Bundes- oder den Länderarchiven auslagert und bei wissenschaftlichen oder privaten Institutionen ansiedelt. (BG)

Explores whether public opinion actually influences US foreign policy. Research has shown that policymakers sometimes make decisions based on misperceptions of public opinion. A research project was conducted to link US foreign policy in the 1990s with public opinion trends. Such policies as the disengagement from foreign affairs, closing US embassies, cutting foreign aid, failing to pay UN dues, & resisting cooperation in peacekeeping operations, while keeping defense spending high was thought to be the result of public opinion. Eighty-three members of the foreign policy community, including members of Congress & executive-branch officials, journalists, & members of nongovernmental organizations, were interviewed concerning their perceptions of public attitudes concerning the US role in foreign affairs. Existing polling data were then reviewed to determine whether policymakers had correctly understood public opinion. A substantial gap in perception & reality was discovered. The book, Misreading the Public: The Myth of a New Isolationism (Kull & Destler 1999) gives a thorough analysis of this study. L. A. Hoffman