NATURE OF PUBLIC POLICY

POLICY EXAMPLES

HOUSE POLICY:
• House chores
• Eating breakfast
• Curfew hours
• Career choice
POLICY EXAMPLES

OFFICE POLICY:
• Tardiness
• Union organizing
• Promotions
• Incentives
POLICY EXAMPLES

PUBLIC POLICY:
• Constitution
• Acts of Legislature
• Pronouncements
• Public holidays
• Government projects
PUBLIC POLICY
Response to the existence of a perceived problem or an opportunity

A settled course of action to be

followed by a government or an
institution

Synonym for plan and program

PUBLIC POLICY OBJECTIVES

• Reconcile conflicting claims

for scarce resources
• Foster cooperation that
probably would not occur
• Prohibit morally unacceptable
behavior
• Protect the rights of
individuals
• Provide direct benefits to
citizens
POLICY CHARACTERISTICS
STRATEGIC • Looks ahead, contributes to
long-term goals

OUTCOME FOCUSED • Delivers desired changes in

the real world

JOINED-UP • Works across organizational

boundaries

INCLUSIVE • Fair, takes account of the

interest of all

FLEXIBLE/INNOVATIVE • Tackles causes, not afraid of

experimentation

ROBUST • Stands the test of time, and

works in practice from start
PUBLIC POLICY LIMITATIONS

• Expectations set are hard to achieve

• Solving problems of a group cause
problems to others
• Some problems have more than one
cause
• Some policies more costly than the
problems
• Political system not structured for
rational decision making