Policy Studies Research Articles

Digital abilities, between instrumentalization and empowerment: a discourse analysis of Chilean Secondary Technical and Vocational public policy documents

ABSTRACT It is argued that developing digital abilities is key for today’s knowledge society. They facilitate engaging with pervasive information communication technologies and manipulating information. Governments have invested vastly in formal education aimed at developing digital abilities. Policies and directives driving this venture need to be examined. Otherwise, their potential risks being thwarted. Grounded in concepts derived from Laclau and Mouffe, five public policy documents central to Chile's Secondary Vocational Education and Traning (S-TVET) system underwent a synchronic heuristic discourse analysis as understood under relational-ontology. Findings indicate that all analysed documents are articulated with a myth of an information society. Additionally, two prominent discourses were identified: an instrumentalization discourse and an empowerment discourse. When referencing S-TVET, however, the most salient discourse is that of instrumentalization. Instrumentalization discourses render digital abilities under a narrow corporate fixed set of decontextualised skills, and risk thwarting their potential.

The EU as multidisciplinary education podium: Fusing contextual and decisional policy analytics

The purpose of this article is to describe a multidisciplinary approach implemented in teaching public policy analysis at university level. The approach fuses (a) contextual policy analysis with (b) bivariate and multivariate analysis techniques and (c) data analytics skills to improve the learners’ competence to conduct “decisional” policy analysis. The teaching subject matter was based on European Union policies and Eurostat data and delivered over a period of 3 years in a semester course and summer school formats. The multidisciplinary fusion generated strong interest among learners and participants from various backgrounds and skill levels. At the end of the course, even those with little or no previous exposure in at least one of the teaching topics were able to quickly grasp the “big picture” and explore their newly acquired knowledge with their own analyses. As a whole, this is an educational design where the multidisciplinary fusion is instrumented in the scope of a single course, not as the combination of different courses in a curriculum. The outcome is a viable and contemporary way to sidestep the quantitative–qualitative analysis divide (where applicable) and help learners gain valuable insight into how seemingly different subjects eventually fuse into applicable knowledge. The multidisciplinary synergy that instigated the course design was mirrored in research effort by the authors leading to publishable work, suggesting that the approach can be adopted and adapted to foster or enhance multidisciplinary research efforts. Similar educational designs can be used in existing curricula to bridge seemingly “distant” subjects and improve the comprehension of how seemingly “distant” subjects relate to each other. As in the case described, in curricula where such subjects already exist, the “raw” expertise is already present and can be readily utilized.

Considerations and inquiries about the dynamics of the brazilian state facing the demands of schooling

The aim of this study is to understand issues of public policy, government and governance in relation to Education in Brazil, making use, for this analysis, of an understanding of evaluative and managerial instruments, in addition to public policies aimed at school education, to understand the scenario built in national education. Under the guise of cognitive analysis of public policies and their foundations, the state of the art is mobilized to better understand and analyze the guiding concepts of this work, which also considers theories about a change in the bias of bureaucracy and its role in the state. In the end, it is noted that the actions of the Brazilian government, in line with international pressure and evaluation mechanisms, assume an interventionist and inefficient character, which places the equitable democratization of education, advocated in the 1988 Constitution, as a challenge yet to be reached and with many obstacles along the way.

Biodiversity and Stage of the Art of Three Pollinators Taxa in Mexico: An Overview

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) confirmed that pollinators have declined in abundance and diversity; additionally, there is insufficient data for Latin America. Thus, we performed a review on scientific studies and databases to determine the state of the art of the diversity of three pollinator animals (bees, hummingbirds, and bats) in Mexico as well as an analysis of relevant public policies to conserve these species. We found 2063 bee species reported to be present in Mexico. The biodiversity of hummingbirds (58 species) and pollinator bats (12 species) is well known. We identified 57 scientific studies published in the last 20 years related to the biodiversity of bees (30 studies), hummingbirds (16 studies), and pollinator bats (11 studies). Relatively few, or no current studies on hummingbirds and pollinators bats at risk as well as for more than 1000 bee species is available. Great efforts have been made about policies and programs to improve the knowledge and conservation of pollinators in Mexico the last years such as the Species at Risk Conservation Program (PROCER), the Species Conservation Action Program (PACE), and the Natural Protected Ares System (CONANP). However, information of the status of many species and regions is still scarce. Thus, more studies about biodiversity, density, and trends as well as studies of the impact of policies and programs on pollinator species in Mexico are needed.

Analysis of regional public employment policies in pandemic settings

Analysis of regional public employment policies in pandemic settings

Designing policy mixes for emerging wicked problems. The case of pharmaceutical residues in freshwaters

ABSTRACT Wicked problems continuously emerge in the field of environmental governance. Characterized by goal conflicts, complexity, and uncertainty, wicked problems typically call for participatory policy designs. However, the effects of participation are widely unclear, given the indefinite nature of solutions to wicked problems. This research sheds light on this debate by developing and applying a systematic structural approach to assess policy mixes for emerging wicked problems. Based on a review of literature in the field of public policy and environmental governance, we identify eight assessment criteria matching three dimensions of wicked problems: coherence, consistency, congruence to address conflicts; comprehensiveness and diversity to address complexity; and adaptability, reversibility, and robustness to address informational uncertainty. The concept is demonstrated taking as an example two recently proposed policy mixes to address pharmaceutical freshwater pollution in Germany. This concept demonstration suggests that policy mixes resulting from desk research and participatory processes differ in the way they address wicked problems. These results contribute to systematically assess the role of participation in designing policy mixes for emerging wicked policy problems and open up for more advanced discussions on the role of structural approaches in public policy analyses.

Ordenando el caos: cuatro enfoques metodológicos para investigar en políticas públicas

Public policy analysis (PPA) is a disciplinary field where multiple theories and methodological procedures converge. This research note addresses whether it is possible to organize knowledge in a way that philosophical assumptions, analytical frameworks and methods could be aligned. To this aim, Patrick Jackson’s typology is used as an organizational scheme of the debates in philosophy of science. Based on this, we propose a distribution of PPA macro theories in correspondence with the four methodologies defined in Jackson’s scheme: neopositivism, realism, analyticism and reflexivity. The purpose of this exercise is to make PPA theoretical proposals more accessible for researchers and, this way, to highlight their distinctive elements and practical implications for research methodologies. This will allow to visualize the potential paths that could lead towards more consistent, coherent and congruent research designs.

Public Agrarian Policies and Food Security in Cameroon: Problems and Challenges towards Agricultural Development

The hunger riots that Cameroon experienced in February 2008 were on the one hand a local manifestation of the world food crisis (2007-2008) and on the other hand, a result of ineffective agricultural policies implemented since the 1960s. The analysis of public food security policies in Cameroon from 1960 to 2008, highlights the inability of the latter to fight effectively against food insecurity and to bring Cameroonian agriculture out of the rut. These riots were likely to have a long-term effect on Cameroon's socio-economic trajectory. Because they were food for thought for the Cameroonian government, which ended up realizing that the constraints facing agricultural development felt an immediate need for solutions after the end of the riots. The post-riot strategies implemented by the Cameroonian government boil down to all the measures taken to stem the impact of the crisis and allow food security to all social strata. However, these economic redistribution strategies adopted by the Cameroonian government to allow the poorest to have access to food at an affordable price still fail to stem the situation. Literature relating to the riots of February 2008 in Cameroon abounds, but little is concerned with the analysis of the causes and post-riot government strategies, which is very crucial to understanding the origins of the problems facing the Cameroonian agricultural community today. This article examines the distant and immediate causes of the February 2008 hunger riots in Cameroon, including the post-riot strategies implemented by the Cameroonian government to combat food insecurity and the contribution of international partners.

Telephones in public health policy processes in sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review

Background The telephone is being put to work in the quest for universal health coverage in sub-Saharan Africa. Multiple mobile health pilot projects are being deployed. The use of mobile technologies including citizens in the formulation, analysis, and revision of public health policies in sub-Saharan Africa is recent. This citizen m-participation could influence the democratic engagement of citizens and leaders in the planning, budgeting, and transparency of local governance processes of health systems. Methods We conducted a scoping review. A total of 995 papers were initially identified, 37 documents were finally included in the final synthesis after a review of the abstract and full text by two researchers. Results Despite multiple challenges, the social, technological, and instrumental feasibility of citizen m-participation in health decision-making processes is real. The documents highlight the contribution of m-Citizen Participation to the ongoing construction of a robust health democracy. However, government commitment and leadership for this innovation remain weak. This slows down the processes of inclusion and empowerment of patients on their health needs. Conclusions Evidence suggests that citizen m-participation is relevant to the inclusion of citizens in health decision-making processes. However, research is limited. We recommend participatory action research mechanisms focused on citizen inclusion in health decision-making processes in sub-Saharan Africa to expand the knowledge base on this innovation.

Advocating for minority Veterans in the United States: Principles for equitable public policy

LAY SUMMARY Minority Veterans in the United States are often excluded, whether intentionally or not, from public policy initiatives, leading to approaches that attempt to account for, or include, minority Veterans after the policy process has begun rather than at the foundational stages. This leads to policies and programs that do not adequately serve or that may harm minority Veteran communities. Drawing on their work with the U.S. Senate and House Veterans’ Affairs Committees and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the authors outline four principles for equitable Veteran public policy to better support minority Veterans and their communities. These principles are grounded in intersectionality theory, a framework that starts from the recognition that everyone has multiple identities and that these identities relate to the inequalities one experiences personally and systemically. The authors hope these principles contribute to more equitable public policy analyses and practices to better serve minority Veterans and lessen instances of inequality or injustice.

Two-way commuting: Asymmetries from time use surveys

Daily commuting of workers is a complex phenomenon that has long attracted research attention and, despite the significant literature acknowledging differences between morning and evening commuting, commuting trips to and from work are considered symmetric in much of the prior research. We explore the asymmetries in time spent commuting to and from work, in seven countries, using detailed time use records from the Multinational Time Use Study (MTUS). We focus on the duration, mode of transport, and timing of commuting trips, and we provide evidence of the socio-demographic characteristics related to such asymmetries. We find that commutes to work (usually in the morning) last longer than commutes from work (usually in the afternoon or evening), although there are quantitative differences among countries. The timing of commuting also differs across countries, although commutes to work are more concentrated at certain hours in the morning than commutes from work. Our results may provide a better analysis of public policies, and open questions for future research, tackling the correlation between commuting behaviors and worker well-being, land use and city structure, and extreme commuting, among others.

Comparing the regulation and incentivization of e-cigarettes across 97 countries

E-cigarette use continues to increase globally despite uncertainty regarding their long-term health impacts and around their effectiveness for tobacco smoking cessation. This uncertainty creates unique challenges for governments as they attempt to optimally regulate and positively or negatively incentivize these products in a way that maximizes the public's health. Current approaches to e-cigarette regulation and incentivization fall within a spectrum of options ranging from a singular focus on health protection, whereby policies intend to prevent the dangers of e-cigarettes, to a singular focus on using e-cigarettes for harm reduction, whereby policies intend to reduce the more harmful effects of smoking tobacco. Regulation options include prohibition, component ban, and regulation as medicinal products, poisons, tobacco products, consumer products, and/or unique products. Incentivization options include taxation, subsidization, and providing a financial reward. Through comparative public policy analysis, this study describes, compares and assesses the variety of approaches that 97 countries have taken to regulate and incentivize e-cigarettes. The goal is to inform future decisions by governments on how they approach the public health challenge posed by e-cigarettes, building on a nuanced understanding of the complexities of this challenge and what other jurisdictions have already implemented and learned.

Implementasi Pembentukan Sistem Interdiksi Terpadu dalam Instruksi Presiden Republik Indonesia Nomor 2 Tahun 2020 pada Badan Narkotika Nasional

This paper aims to describe the Integrated Interdiction System's implementation in the National Narcotics Board to eradicate narcotics smuggling and illegal trafficking. Integrated Interdiction System is one of the actions included in government regulation called Instruksi Presiden Republik Indonesia Nomor 2 Tahun 2020 about national action plan to prevent and eradicate narcotics abuse and illegal trafficking (P4GN) 2020-2024. The theory used is the public policy analysis theory from William N. Dunn. At the phase of policy monitoring, used the social auditing approach. This paper used qualitative descriptive methods—primary data collected from interviews with the Integrated Interdiction System's implementor in National Narcotics Board. The secondary data collected from the literature study. This study's findings are the implementation of the Integrated Interdiction System fulfills three of four policy monitoring functions. Furthermore, concerned with the social auditing approach, Integrated Interdiction System fulfills the policy process of relations among input, process, output, and outcome.

Assessing the development of performance audit methodology in the supreme audit institution: The case of Indonesia

Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan (BPK), or The Audit Board of the Republic of Indonesia, has introduced performance audits intensively since public sector audit reforms were initiated in 2001. However, the implementation of performance audits still faces several obstacles. This study examines the development of the performance audit methodology in BPK, which can be divided into three stages: before the revitalization of BPK in 2006, the initial development of performance audits during 2006-2010, and the maturity of the implementation of performance audits since 2011. This study concludes that several key factors have affected the implementation of performance audits at BPK, including the development of audit guidelines, the dynamics of medium-term government planning, the focus of the BPK’s Management, and assistance provided by other supreme audit institutions (SAI). To address new realities and challenges in the future, more sophisticated performance audit methods need to be adopted by BPK, such as big data analytics, the adoption of governance audits, and employing public policy analysis. Without adopting such methods, the institutionalization of ​​effective performance audits might not be achieved in the future.

Adaptive co-management of environmental risks in result-based agreements for the provision of environmental services: A case study of the South of the Divide Conservation Action Program

Environmental risks pose a threat to the achievement of ecosystem outcomes in Results- or Outcome-based Agreements for endangered species conservation on agricultural lands. As a result, environmental risks can deter prospective land managers from participating in Results-based Agreements if not addressed. This qualitative case study examines a Results-based Agreement program implemented by the South of the Divide Conservation Action Program (SODCAP Inc.) in Southwestern Saskatchewan. We contribute to understanding the nature of environmental risks in Results-based Agreements and how SODCAP Inc., an emergent leader in grassroots-focused conservation governance in Southwestern Saskatchewan, works with land managers to address environmental risks. Using drought as an example of environmental risks, the study finds that drought is a common occurrence in the study area; therefore, land managers consider it a critical determinant when deciding to participate in Results-based Agreements. The study also reveals that environmental risks affect land managers involved with Results-based Agreements both by limiting their ability to achieve ecosystem targets and by forcing them to incur extra costs (i.e., extra management and opportunity costs) in their attempt to meet ecosystem targets under drought conditions. Finally, the case study illustrates a participatory and result-enhancing approach adopted by SODCAP Inc., which draws several parallels with adaptive co-management, to manage environmental risks. Our study findings contribute to a relatively limited body of scholarship in environmental risk management in Results-based Agreements. In addition to the study's policy relevance, it also calls for studies into conservation programs that are result-enhancing.

Environmental regulation and technological innovation: evidence from China.

We analyze the real effects of the environmental regulation on technological innovation using an air pollution reduction governance policy promulgated in China under the 12th Plan in 2012. We treat the Air Pollution Prevention Policy as a quasi-natural experiment that is plausibly exogenous to the firms' innovation policy and thus use the difference in difference (DID) as an identification strategy in our analysis. We provide evidence that environmental regulation substantially promotes innovation productivity. Our findings reveal that this impact is more pronounced for state-owned firms, pollution-intensive industries, and high-tech-intensive industries. We uncover three possible underlying economic mechanisms through which the air pollution reduction policy impacts innovation. We show that government financing, external governance from the capital market, and R&D intensity are three underlying economic channels through which environmental regulation promotes technological innovation. Collectively this study's policy implication is that industrial policies that promote greener environments can enhance economic performance.

Is the geopolitical risk an incentive or obstacle to renewable energy deployment? Evidence from a panel analysis

This study explores the effect of geopolitical risk on renewable energy deployment, assuming that geopolitical uncertainty stimulates nations to be independent and rely on their renewable energy sources in order to reduce the geopolitical risk concomitant to fossil fuel inflows. The current paper's data sample covers 10 net crude oil importer countries during the period 1985–2017. It employs panel cointegration analysis and estimate an autoregressive distributed lag model. The results show that geopolitical risk has a significant and positive effect on renewable energy diffusion. Therefore, this work determines that it is an incentive, not an obstacle, to renewable energy deployment. The present study's policy implication is that renewable energy development is expected to increase if the geopolitical risk rises, all else being equal.

Developmental surveillance, screening and evaluation: an analysis of Brazil's public policies for child care

This essay analyzes Brazilian laws, public policies and programs for the promotion of child development, focusing on initiatives aimed at identifying developmental delays. Since 1984, early childhood legislation has included child development as part of the Brazilian child care agenda. However, screening and developmental assessment were not placed in a high position as one of the most important actions aimed at childcare. It is necessary to formulate official instruments or scales, and implement interventions for the detection of developmental disorders, delays and risk conditions that will enable to reach more children, and the early identification of developmental delays.

Analisis Kebijakan Pelarangan Sepeda Motor Melintas Pada Jalan MH Thamrin - Medan Merdeka Barat Di DKI Jakarta

The growth rate of vehicles in Jakarta, motorcycles are vehicles with the highest growth rate compared to other vehicles, so that in order to overcome the level of congestion it is necessary to have a policy that regulates the flow of these two-wheeled vehicles. In 2014, the Governor of DKI Jakarta issued Regulation of the Governor of DKI Jakarta Number 195 of 2014 concerning Restrictions on Motorcycle Traffic, which among other things contained rules for prohibiting motorcycles from crossing at MH Thamrin-Medan Merdeka Barat aimed at reducing congestion, pollution and accident rates. However, this policy was finally revoked by the Supreme Court through decision number 57 P/HUM/2017 which was published on November 21, 2017. The case example can be reviewed through analysis based on public policy theory to determine the impact of the policy using 3 (three) theories, namely: analysis based on public policy theory, analysis based on policy systems and analysis based on the main forms of public policy analysis which concluded that the Policy for the Prohibition of Motorcycles Crossing on Jalan MH Thamrin-Medan Merdeka Barat arose as a result of congestion levels and high accident rates as a result of The number of motorcycles is increasing every year. The problem that arises in this policy is that the benefits of this policy are not evenly distributed, meaning that not all people feel benefited from this policy, especially motorcycle riders who feel very disadvantaged due to the implementation of this policy.

Phase of the trial (Justice and Crime Coverage)

The variable “phase of a trial” records whether the phase before, during or after the trial is mainly covered in the reporting (vgl. Haney & Greene, 2004; Glark, 2015; Strother, 2017). Studies show that the media’s focus is mainly on the beginning (when the new information about the case has been introduced) and on the end of the trial and the possible emotional reactions to it, while the main trial is usually not or little covered (Vinson & Ertter, 2002; Haney & Greene, 2004). Field of application/theoretical foundation: The variable serves - among other variables – as an indicator of the representativeness of judicial reporting. Example study: Haney & Greene (2004) Information on Haney & Greene (2004) Authors: Craig Haney, Susan Greene Research interest: The study evaluates aspects of newspaper reporting about death penalty cases and capital defendants. Object of analysis: “representative sample of local, mainstream (i.e., non-“tabloid”) newspaper coverage” (134) Time frame of analysis: not mentioned Codebook: not available Info about variable Variable name/definition: phase of the trial [Phase des Gerichtsprozesses] Level of analysis: article Operationalization/coding instructions: “Generally, the stage of the trial process at which the article was written was stated explicitly. Otherwise, it was inferred from the content of the article or by comparing the date of the article to others written about the same case.” (p.136) Values: pretrial guilt-phase penalty sentencing-phase post trial Intercoder reliability: Cronbach’s alpha of .73 across categories (5 Coder), not mentioned for individual category Reference Clark, T. S., Lax, J. R., & Rice, D. (2015). Measuring the political salience of Supreme Court cases. Journal of Law and Courts, 3(1), 37–65. Haney, C. & Greene, S. (2004). Capital constructions: Newspaper reporting in death penalty cases. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, 4(1), 129–150. Strother, L. (2017). How expected political and legal impact drive media coverage of Supreme Court cases, Political Communication, 34(4), S. 571-589. Vinson, C. D., & Ertter, J. S. (2002). Entertainment or Education: How Do Media Cover the Courts? Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, 7(4), S. 80–97.