Public Policy and the Effects of Historical-Cultural Phenomena: The Case of Indiana

Abstract

A dominant feature of federalism in the United States is the diversity of public policies pursued by the states and their subdivisions. Even in the many cases of federally funded and designed grant-in-aid programs, a significant degree of discretion in program implementation is left to state and local governments. Various analyses of these differences in public policy and modes of implementation have indicated that situational factors such as demographic and socioeconomic conditions, extent of urbanization, and party orientation are important factors to be considered in the explanation of public policy variation.' Other studies, however, have suggested that political factors such as apportionment, party competition, character of interest group activity, and degree of reform of governmental structure are of primary importance in determining public policy outputs.2 The literature regarding the relative influence of political and socioeconomic determinants of public policy remains largely inconclu-