Problem and Solution

Analysis
- organising your policy analysis

Policy in Health Services Management

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 CONFRONTING POLICY
PROBLEMS
Objectives
1. Analysing yourself: Meta- Analysis ch.15

2. 4 Steps in Rationalist or Linear mode

Problem Analysis
Solution Analysis
Information Gathering
Communication

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Confronting Policy Problems

Policy analysis is a process that involves

formulating and communicating useful
policy

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Confronting Policy Problems

Getting started on a written analysis is

often difficult

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Confronting Policy Problems

Before you try doing policy analysis you

need to analyse yourself

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 1. Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis
(Weimer & Vining, Ch. 15, pp.340-382)

Your self analysis should influence the

way you go about doing policy analysis

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 1. Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis

People tend to fall into two distinct groups

– Linear thinkers
– Non-Linear thinkers

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 1. Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis

Linear thinkers

Who tend to solve problems by moving

sequentially through a series of logical
steps

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 1. Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis

Non-linear thinkers

Who tend to view problems, configuratively

moving back and forth over steps as
various pieces of the puzzle become
apparent and begin falling into place

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 1. Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis

First Meta- Analysis rule

 Linear thinkers should adopt non-linear

thinking strategies while non-linear
thinkers should adopt the linear writing
strategies

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 1.Analysing yourself: Meta-
Analysis

Second Meta- Analysis rule

 Is that analysts should simultaneously

utilise linear and non-linear modes when
conducting policy analysis

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Steps in the Rationalist or Linear
Model Figure15.1 Pg 344

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13
Steps in the Rationalist or Linear
Mode
PROBLEM ANALYSIS SOLUTION ANALYSIS

P1. Understanding the S1. Choosing evaluation

Problem criteria
S2. Specifying policy
P2.Choosing and alternatives
explaining goals and S3.Evaluating:predicting
constraints impacts of alternatives and
valuing them in terms of
P3.Choosing a solution criteria
method S4. Recommending actions
F15.1 p.344

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 Problem Analysis
1 Understanding The Problem

 Understanding policy problem involves

assessing conditions that concern your
client

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 Client Orientation

Address the issue the client poses!

“It is always better to answer with

uncertainty the question asked than to
answer with certainty a question which
was not asked”

“good analysis does not suppress

uncertainty”
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 Problem Analysis
P1 Understanding the Problem

a) Assessing the symptoms.

Clients generally experience problems as
conditions or impacts that some group
perceives as undesirable
The analyst’s task is to assess symptoms
and provide an explanation (model) of how
they arise

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 Problem Analysis
P1 Understanding the Problem
b) Framing the problem

Avoid reductionism (seeking a single

relationship/explanation)

Integrate other goals and problems (e.g.

efficiency not the only appropriate goal of
public policy)

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 Problem Analysis
1 Understanding the Problem
b) Framing the problem continued.
If evidence suggested market failure in an
operational market there is a prima facie
case for government intervention
If there is no operational market and no
evidence of market failure there is a prima
facie case of government failure (Fig. 9.1 p.205)

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20
 Problem Analysis
P1 Understanding the Problem
c) Modelling the problem (Local Council)
Problem: Increasing cost of land fill for solid waste.

Frame the problem in terms of market or

government’s failure (e.g. waste disposal- if I
had to pay more for disposal based on the
quantity of my refuse I might generate less and
we could reduce cost of land fill)
What other effects of this change?
What about drug abuse? What are the problems?

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 Problem Analysis
P2 Choosing and explaining goals
and constraints
The most difficult step in any policy
analysis is deciding on appropriate goals

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P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints
cont’d
You must determine the relevant goals
Specifying goals requires you to be
normative
You often must decide what should be
wanted

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 P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints
cont’d

Accept that goals are both outputs of

analysis and inputs

Clarifying the distinction between goals

and policies

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 P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints
cont’d

Substantive goals represent value like

equity and efficiency (e.g. human dignity,self-
actualisation).

Instrumental goals are conditions that

make it easier to achieve substantive
goals (e.g. political feasibility, balancing the
budget)

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P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints
cont’d

Policy analysis is the heart of the possible

Resource constraints therefore are of

central importance

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P2 Choosing and explaining goals
and constraints

Your list of goals for a given problem

might include, equity, human dignity and
budget availability

It is impossible to describe the relevant

goal for all policy problems

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 P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints
cont’d
Clarifying the trade-offs between goals

And specifying goals and the appropriate

trade-offs among them is an important
output of policy analysis

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 P2 Choosing and explaining goals and
constraints

Distinction between goals and policies

Goals should be used to evaluate
alternative policies
Goals are the values we seek to promote
Policies the alternatives and strategies for
promoting them

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 Problem Analysis
P3 Selecting a solution method cont’d

You must decide which controls are

relevant to your analysis before you can
begin to consider solutions systematically

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 Problem Analysis
3 Selecting a solution method

Cost Benefit Analysis

7 s Analysis
Multi-goal analysis

P.356-357

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS
1. Selecting impact categories for the relevant
goals
2. Generating a mutually exclusive set of policy
alternatives
3. Predicting the impact that each alternative
would have in terms of achieving each goal
4. Valuing the predicted impacts, qualitative or
quantitative measures
5. Assessing the alternatives in terms of the
goals and making a recommendation

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS

At the heart of multi-goal analysis is the

systematic comparison of alternate
policies in terms of goals

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 Multi-goal analysis
Draft Goal Goal Goal Goal Goal Outcome
A B C D E
Policy
1 √ X X √ X 2

2 √ √ X X X 2

3 X X √ X X 1

4 X √ √ √ √ 4

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS
First step

Assessing how well each policy

alternative contributes to each goal

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS
Second step

Detailed specification of policy alternatives

that can promote policy goals

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS
Third step

Fill in all the cells of the matrix with

evaluations of the predictions of the impact
of each policy alternatives T15.1 Pg 360

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 SOLUTION ANALYSIS
Fourth step

The fourth step involves recommending

one of the alternatives and explaining the
basis for the choice. As one alternative
rarely dominates the others.

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 Predicting and valuing: putting
goals and alternatives together

Before you can evaluate alternatives in

terms of criteria you must predict their
impacts

First, use your model, your specifications

of the alternative, and your commonsense
to list as many different impacts that you
can.
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 Predicting and valuing: putting
goals and alternatives together

Second go through your criteria to make

sure that you have a prediction of each
one

The key point is that you should predict

and value the effects on each of the
alternatives on every criteria

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Predicting and valuing putting goals
and alternatives together
Valuing impacts

Introduce a common metric for several

impacts so, you can make them directly
comparable

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GATHERING INFORMATION FOR
POLICY ANALYSIS

Document Research
Data And Statistical Sources
Documentation And Internet
Field Research
The Most Important Component:THINK

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 DOCUMENT RESEARCH

Very few policy problems are truly unique.

Inevitably some information is available
somewhere that will assist you in some
aspect of your policy analysis

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 DOCUMENT RESEARCH

In conducting policy analysis you face the

critical task of developing explanations for
what is going on and what will happen if
particular alternatives are implemented

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 DOCUMENT RESEARCH

Relevant literature is generally easier to

identify and more usable for greater the
extent to which the policy problem is
universal

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 DOCUMENT RESEARCH

Four general categories of documents

deserve consideration
Journal articles, books and dissertations
Publications and reports from interest
groups
Government publications
Popular press

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 DOCUMENT RESEARCH

Remember it is crucial that you reference

all your material.

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 DATA AND STATISTICAL
SOURCES

You may wish to examine primary data

sources
Often universities and think tanks are
important sources of data

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 DATA AND STATISTICAL
SOURCES

Many social science journals now require

authors to deposit the data that they used
in their statistical analysis in accessible
archives

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 DOCUMENTATION AND
INTERNET

The internet and world wide web has

become A major source of information for
policy analysis

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 DOCUMENTATION AND
INTERNET

It can be difficult to validate data from the

net
It is right to give credit to the author

It can be difficult to tell others where to

find the source you used

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 FIELD RESEARCH

 Field research consists of talking to

people gathering raw data or finding
unpublished reports memorandum or other
organisational documents

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 FIELD RESEARCH

Who should you decide to talk to.

The literature review will often suggest

key people

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 FIELD RESEARCH

Most analysts quickly develop their own

resources of local interest groups,
professional bodies, regulatory agencies,
consulting group’s and government
contacts

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 FIELD RESEARCH

Interviews do not have to be in person

You can use telephone,
Internet or e-mail

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 FIELD RESEARCH

Four issues relating to interviewing p. 335

1 What kind of information those

interviewing elicit most effectively ?
2 How can you judge the efficacy of the
information you get?

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 FIELD RESEARCH

3 How do you get interviewees to talk?

4 How should you decide when to interview

someone?

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What Information will Interviewing
Elicit Most Effectively

A. Historical background and context.

The narrative of what has happened
B. Basic facts, whether directly through
interviews or the raw data provided by
interviewees.

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What Information will Interviewing
Elicit Most Effectively

C.Political attitudes and resources of major

actors. (These may not written anywhere.
Interviews may be the only source for this
kind of formation.)

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What Information will Interviewing
Elicit Most Effectively

D.Projections about the future;

extrapolations of current trends.

E.Other potential interviewees and written

materials.

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HOW CAN THE EFFICACY OF AN
INTERVIEW BE JUDGED?

The plausibility, reasonableness, and

coherence of answers

The internal consistency of answers

The specificity and detail of answers

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HOW CAN THE EFFICACY OF AN
INTERVIEW BE JUDGED?

Correspondence to known facts.

First hand familiarity of the interviewee

with the facts described.

The interviewee's motivation, bias, and

position
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HOW CAN THE EFFICACY OF AN
INTERVIEW BE JUDGED?

Reasons that the interviewee might

withhold information.

The self‑critical nature of the interviewee.

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 HOW DO YOU GET
INTERVIEWEES TO TALK?

The "energy" must come from the analyst,

not the interviewee be prepared to ask
questions.

 The analyst should not pretend to be

neutral, but should avoid and hostility.

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 HOW DO YOU GET
INTERVIEWEES TO TALK?

Demonstrate that you have other sources

of information that interpret events
differently from the current interview.

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 HOW DO YOU GET
INTERVIEWEES TO TALK?

Demonstrate reasonable tenacity on

important questions.

Point out other views on a topic and

indicate that this is the interviewee’s
chance to tell their side of the issue.

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Approach early in the interview sequence:

Those who are likely to be rich sources of

information.
Individuals who have power. (They can provide
access, either directly or indirectly, to other
sources of information.)
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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?

Knowledgeable persons who can give you

information that will induce others to talk
more freely.

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?

Friendly expert interviewees who will

contribute to the credibility of the analysis.

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Potential opponents, to the extent that
they can be assessed.

Retired employees.'

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Approach Relatively Late:

Those interviewees who are likely to be

hostile or defensive. (Use earlier
interviews to acquire leverage.)

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Interviewees whom you may not be able
to speak to again because they are busy,
remote, or otherwise difficult to reach.
(Especially if you want their reactions to
policy alternatives that you cannot fully
specify until the later stages of your
project.)

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Powerful political opponents who could
prevent you from gaining access to other
interviewees.'

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?

 Administrators who may not identify

critical issues even though they have the
requisite knowledge.

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 HOW SHOULD YOU DECIDE
WHEN TO INTERVIEW
SOMEONE?
Expert interviewees, especially
academics, who may be more theoretically
oriented. (If you interview them too early,
then you may not know enough to frame
questions that take full advantage of their
expertise)

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 4. Communicating analysis

 How to Communicating analysis

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 Communicating analysis

What you believe your clients should do

Why should your client do it

How should your client do it

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 Communicating analysis

Structured integration
Keeping your client’s attention
Establishing credibility
Communicating policy analysis : Table 15.5
Pg 380

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 Summary

1. Analysing yourself: Meta- Analysis

2. 4 Steps in Rationalist or Linear mode

Problem Analysis
Solution Analysis
Information Gathering
Communication
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