Policy Debate Research Articles

Booksellers as placemakers: Innovative roles of independent booksellers in high street retailing

High street vitality and viability has been a long-standing topic in UK research and policy debates. While the presence and role of the independent retailer is discussed in the associated academic literature, specific consideration of independent bookstores has been lacking, given their perceived position as a special type of retailer within the high street ecosystem. There is, to date, very limited knowledge regarding booksellers’ contributions to high street vitality and viability. We explore the role(s) of booksellers by demonstrating how they can help drive the vitality and viability of their high streets in the UK and Ireland – identifying booksellers as social entrepreneurs, value co-creators, multifunctional initiators and speciality anchors. As such, their placemaking activities extend far beyond retailing. We argue that by assuming such innovative roles, placemaking efforts undertaken by booksellers can catalyse town centre transformation and contribute to revitalisation.

An argument for open education policy

While many historically contingent barriers to individual liberty have been deconstructed, I argue that current education policy continues to maintain a discriminatory educational milieu that constitutes individuals as dis/abled. I describe this current government formulation of educational spaces as Closed Policy. Various contingent environmental barriers, dynamically intersecting with, for example, gender, class, ethnicity, physiology, and neurodiversity; inhibit individuals due to constructed notions of ability and disability. I draw upon the principles of Open Futures, Open Society, piecemeal social engineering, and prioritarianism to call for a deconstruction of Closed Policy and movement towards Open Policy. I argue that current educational policy is unjust and should be deconstructed to free individuals from coercion, prejudice, and harm. I argue for a shift towards Open Policy so that difference can be celebrated and the potential for Open Futures is maximised.

Wie kann die Sicherheitslage in Deutschland verbessert werden?

Abstract Since the “Zeitenwende” proclaimed in Spring 2022, there has been an increased focus on both internal and external security issues, such as the procurement of military goods and defense capabilities. The geopolitical dynamics towards more multipolarity are forcing Europe, and therefore Germany as well, to take greater control of its own destiny. Emancipation from former hegemons offers opportunities; at the same time, successful economic policy navigation requires the efficient use of scarce public funds. Fiscal policy and social debates are controversial. Just think of the budget proposals currently being discussed and the reintroduction of compulsory military service. This discussion explores the extent, direction and sustainable financing options for the necessary changes. What all contributions have in common is the recognition of the necessity and potential of effective coordination at the European level on the issue of military sovereignty.

Securing Repair: Examining Cybersecurity's Influence on the Right to Repair

ABSTRACTCybersecurity is a perennial concern for technology companies, consumers, and policymakers. Recently it has become a lever of opposition against the Right to Repair movement as companies and industry groups position security and reparability as antagonistic, even incompatible, interests. This paper pushes back on those claims. We use critical discourse analysis to explore two contemporary controversies at the intersection of security and repair: (1) the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration's statements concerning automotive repair in Massachusetts and (2) the memorandum of understanding between John Deere and the American Farm Bureau Federation concerning agricultural equipment repair. We find that security concerns are raised as featureless specters of harm rarely supported by concrete or compelling evidence that reparability risks security. Rather, these arguments reflect a rhetorical strategy aimed at thwarting the repair activities of consumers and independent technicians, shifting ongoing policy debates, and influencing public sentiment around the right to repair.

The Rhetoric of Healthcare and the Moral Debate About Theatre-Funded Hospitals in Early Modern Spain.

While early modern Spain may seem a world away, it is an extremely rich and relevant context for gaining a better understanding of the Rhetoric of Health, specifically the power of metaphor, in the related spheres of policy-making and public debate. It was a time and place in which the urban populace's physical well-being depended upon the fortunes of theatrical performances due to a system of alms for hospitals driven by ticket receipts. Anti-theatricalists argued that the immoral nature of theatrical performances made them spiritually and medically detrimental to society. Pro-theatricalists argued that plays were always a public good on balance because they raised much-needed funds for hospitals. Instead of producing a conflict between morality and public health, each side reinforced their connection until the two topics became nearly inseparable in the sphere of public debate. While pro-theatricalists mainly stayed with their arguments about funding hospitals, anti-theatricalists developed a new strategy of literalising the metaphor of theatre as a "plague of the republic" and arguing that immoral entertainment brought literal disease to the populace as a punishment from God. This exemplifies Stephen Pender's observation of how, in an early modern medical context, "Rhetoric as a way of perceiving probabilities and adjusting one's argument to the audience and circumstance offers a model of ethical action and interaction". This article is organised chronologically to track specific adjustments to a specific public-health debate that rely upon moral metaphors of medicine. Each side wrangled over these metaphors in an effort to break a deadlock in a public-health policy debate with entertainment, finance, and morality at its centre. By the end of the seventeenth century, anti-theatricalists finally found their best rhetorical weapon in the literalisation of the "plague of the republic" metaphor, but it only offered a short-term solution to banning theatre contingent upon the ebb and flow of epidemics. Simultaneously, the finance structure of funding hospitals began to erase the role of hospitals from the longstanding debate about the morality of public theatre. The case of early modern Spain provides valuable lessons about the power of metaphor in the Rhetoric of Healthcare that are still applicable today.

¿Libre de la Maleza Estatista? Assessing Neoliberal Promises and Water Markets in Chile

AbstractNeoliberal approaches to water governance, pioneered in Chile in the 1980s, are reappearing today on the centerstage of the water policy debate. While advocates claim that strong property rights, limits on government authority, and water markets can enhance environmental sustainability, efficiency, neutrality, and equity in the distribution of water rights, limited empirical evidence exists on whether neoliberal policies have delivered on these key promises. In this paper, we combine hydrological analysis with a nationwide data set on government water rights allocations between 1981 and 2021 to determine when and where water has been allocated beyond sustainable limits. We then integrate water market transaction and agricultural data to assess how allocations and scarcity conditions relate to spatial and temporal patterns in irrigation, crop distribution, and water market activity. Our results indicate that 30% of catchments are overallocated, and that continued government allocations of water rights during scarcity exacerbate already‐high inequalities in the distribution of water. We find no evidence that scarcity or water markets induced improvements in numerous efficiency metrics. Overall, our results support growing claims that the neoliberal water model fails to fulfill its key promises, notably to the detriment of nature and marginalized rural communities.

Board Gender Diversity and Workplace Safety: Evidence From Quasi‐Natural Experiments

ABSTRACTResearch Questions/IssueThis paper examines the impact of board gender diversity on workplace safety in an international setting from 2002 to 2019. Utilizing gender quotas on corporate boards as a quasi‐natural experiment, we explore the causal effects of gender diversity on workplace safety, highlighting the significant influence of corporate board gender quotas on corporate policies.Research Findings/ResultsUsing a sample of 13,124 firm‐year observations from 48 countries, our findings reveal that gender quotas on corporate boards are linked to higher rates of work‐related injuries. The association is particularly strong in financially constrained firms, as well as in those with high workloads and low investments in workplace safety. In contrast, this effect is mitigated in firms located in countries with strong institutional frameworks and high union representation. The results hold across various regression specifications and remain robust when considering different measures of workplace injuries, board gender diversity, and additional control variables.Theoretical ImplicationsOur study draws on gender behavior theory, social role theory, and gender socialization theory, with findings particularly aligning with gender behavior theory. It advances understanding of how changes in corporate governance structures related to board diversity influence workplace safety. This research underscores the importance of further empirical work to expand this area of study, suggesting valuable directions for future research through cross‐sectional and longitudinal analyses.Practical ImplicationsThe findings provide critical insights for policymakers considering the implementation of gender quotas in boardrooms. Additionally, this research highlights the need for further exploration of unexamined aspects within governance studies, which will significantly influence future policy debates, legislative processes, and corporate practices in promoting gender diversity and enhancing workplace safety.

International comparison of pandemic policies in the United States and Japan: Combination of all-hazards and single-hazard approaches as a realistic option to policymaking for public health emergency management system

The all-hazards approach (AHA) is a ground concept of crisis management to build common capabilities to deal with diverse hazards and adopted as the standard approach by many countries. The single-hazard approach (SHA), on the other hand, is a concept in which measures are taken specifically for a particular disaster. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has raised a policy debate on the effectiveness of pandemic preparedness in both AHA and SHA regimes, which has yet to be settled. This is because not sufficient studies have been conducted to compare policies under both concepts systematically. In this study, a new analytical framework was developed to compare pandemic policies under AHA and SHA concepts. The framework was designed to analyze coverage of hazards and actions for pandemic preparedness and response in the policy documents. The United States (the U. S.) and Japan were selected as the representative countries adopting AHA and SHA respectively. As a result, we empirically demonstrated for the first time that both countries combined multi-hazards and single-hazard countermeasures. This will provide new alternative solutions for the binary argument between two approaches. We also analyzed the coverage of actions for pandemic preparedness and response and found that while both countries comprehensively scoped overall actions, there were significant differences in coverage of individual actions. These findings may be useful to identify agenda to improve pandemic policies after the COVID-19 in each country and the framework developed in this study provides a new tool contributing to policymaking for crisis management.

The Complex Dynamics of Indigenous Education in Mid-Twentieth-Century: Ecuador as a Theater for Political Debate

Abstract Activists in Ecuador established in the 1940s what have come to be remembered as the country's first Indigenous-run bilingual schools. Or at least this is the image that their founders presented when reflecting back on their achievements years later, and what has become fixed in the minds of subsequent educators. Archival records, however, present a more complicated picture. Rather than as “Indigenous” or “bilingual,” the recently formed Federación Ecuatoriana de Indios (Ecuadorean Federation of Indians) had created them as “syndicate” schools to mobilize against the racial discrimination and economic exploitation that agricultural workers faced on government-owned haciendas. In the process, organizers came into conflict with government policies that mandated the creation of public schools in rural communities and on haciendas. The competing school systems became an arena in which public policy debates were carried out with ramifications that extended to rival notions of how society should be properly organized.

Offshore Wind Power Growth and Industrial Development in Emerging Markets

Offshore wind has developed significantly over the past decade, and promising new markets are emerging, such as Brazil, South Africa, India, Poland, and Turkey. As logistic transport activities increase complexities, developing regional supply chains can help to reduce costs and enhance the sector’s competitiveness. This article proposes a framework for the industrial development of the offshore wind supply chain in new markets. This study is grounded in a systematic literature review and is validated through a multi-case study, identifying key variables and factors influencing industrial growth. Adopting a process-based approach, factors and variables were modeled into a framework, encompassing the following four phases: (1) demand assessment of a new sector, (2) sectorial and industrial planning, (3) industrial development and maturity, and (4) sectorial and industrial renewal or decline. Each phase brings together a group of policies. Our findings show the policies’ interrelations. These results complement the few studies that have examined the industrial development process, providing a clear guide as to the process for the development of the offshore wind industry in specific regions. Thus, the framework provides elements that contribute as a valuable tool to the debate, structuring, and development of public policies for the industrial development of a new sector.

Understanding educational attainment disparities in Northern Ireland: the impact of pupils’ demographic characteristics and health status on post-primary outcomes.

Across the UK, attainment disparities remain at the forefront of education and policy debates. This is particularly evident in Northern Ireland (NI), which although is a jurisdiction of the UK, reflects a different context due to its transition to a post-conflict society and its dually selective education system (academically and religiously). In NI, post-primary attainment disparities have been reported according to pupil characteristics such as gender and socio-economic background. However, due to the lack of available data, there is limited evidence examining the influence of the health status of pupils on their educational outcomes. This study examines the influence of a pupil’s socio-demographic profile, health status, and school-level factors on post-primary attainment, using a linked administrative dataset that combined the household Census (2011), School Census (2010-2014) and School Leavers Survey (2010-2014) for the first time. Multilevel modelling and interactions terms were conducted to consider the relative effects of physical health and mental health on attainment. In addition, the study presents a holistic approach to understanding the association between health status and education outcomes by considering self-reported health status, the presence of an illness that limits daily activities, and the presence of a physical and mental health condition. The findings highlight that poor physical and mental health have negative associations with post-primary attainment in NI. More specifically, pupils reporting bad health, a physical or mental health condition and a limiting illness that affects their daily activities have lower educational attainment outcomes than those with no markers of ill-health (physically or mentally).

The Ballpark Effect: Spatial-Data-Driven Insights into Baseball’s Local Economic Impact

The impact of sporting events on local economies and their spatial distribution is a topic of active policy debate. This study adds to the discussion by examining granular cellphone location data to assess the spillover effects of Major League Baseball (MLB) games in a major US city. Focusing on the 2019 season, we explore granular geospatial patterns in mobility and consumer spending on game days versus non-game days in the Saint Louis region. Through density-based clustering and hotspot analysis, we uncover distinct spatiotemporal signatures and variations in visitor affluence across different teams. This study uses features like game day characteristics, location data (latitude and longitude), business types, and spending data. A significant finding is that specific spatial clusters of economic activity are formed around the stadium, particularly on game days, with multiple clusters identified. These clusters reveal a marked increase in spending at businesses such as restaurants, bars, and liquor stores, with revenue surges of up to 38% in certain areas. We identified a significant change in spending patterns in the local economy during games, with results varying greatly across teams. Notably, the XGBoost model performs best, achieving a test R2 of 0.80. The framework presented enhances the literature at the intersection of urban economics, sports analytics, and spatial modeling while providing data-driven actionable insights for businesses and policymakers.

A microsimulation model of smoking prevalence in England: exploring potential impacts of ‘Tobacco 21’ and e-cigarette policy scenarios on socioeconomic and regional inequalities

Background The burden of morbidity and mortality in England, is greater among priority groups such as those with lower income or routine and manual occupations. Using a microsimulation model, we estimate projected changes in smoking prevalence according to socio-economic position under selected policy scenarios that are relevant to ongoing policy implementation and debate. Methods Initiated using real-world data from adult (16+) respondents to the Smoking Toolkit Study (STS), the ‘QuitSimX’ microsimulation model projects individual-level smoking uptake and cessation in England over time. The simulation was run under two separate policy scenarios, raising the age of sale of tobacco products to 21 (simulations run from 2013–2023), and moving a proportion of all individuals quitting using a certain method (such as over the counter nicotine replacement therapy), or no method, to using e-cigarettes instead (simulations run from 2015–2025). Under each scenario, the size of effect were specified, and the outcomes simulated and assessed by indicators of socio-economic position. Absolute and relative inequalities were examined by comparing at the initial and final timepoint the i) absolute difference in smoking prevalence between less and more advantaged groups subgroups and ii) the ratio of smoking prevalence. Results While absolute and relative inequalities in smoking prevalence declined across the simulated period under all policy scenarios and the counterfactual ‘no intervention’ scenario, at the final time point absolute and relative inequalities between social grades and regions were similar across all scenarios, with the exception that the relative (but not absolute) inequality under the most impactful tobacco 21 scenario as marginally higher than under the baseline scenario. Conclusion A microsimulation model of smoking in England illustrates that absolute inequalities are projected to decrease under a Tobacco 21 or quitting with e-cigarettes scenario but that some policy solutions (Tobacco 21) may result in an increase in relative inequalities.

Alcohol free? An analysis of UK and Scottish Government obesity policies’ engagement with alcohol 1999–2023

Background and aimsAlcoholic beverages can be highly calorific yet remain largely absent from obesity policy debates. This article seeks to identify how Scottish and English obesity policies have engaged with the issue of alcohol consumption since devolution.MethodsObesity policy documents for England and Scotland from 1999 to 2023 were thematically analysed to identify their engagement with alcohol consumption. A stakeholder analysis was undertaken to identify key public health actors and commercial sector policy actors in the debate regarding the inclusion of alcohol in obesity policy. Their engagement with the issue of alcohol as an obesity policy issue was assessed through thematic analysis of consultation responses, along with documents, press releases, reports and other statements on policy (e.g. blog posts) available on stakeholder websites.ResultsWhile alcohol was recognised as a risk factor for obesity within obesity policy documents, no specific measures to address this issue were identified until a consultation on mandatory calorie labelling on alcoholic beverages was proposed in 2020. Engagement with alcohol in the policy documents was mainly limited to voluntary and self-regulatory measures favoured by industry actors who portrayed themselves as a key part of the policy solution. They used the policy focus on childhood obesity as a pretext to exclude alcoholic drink from fiscal and labelling measures. Public health NGOs, by contrast, argued that obesity measures such as mandatory calorie labelling and other obesity policies should be extended to alcoholic beverages.ConclusionThere is an insufficient engagement with alcohol as an obesity policy issue within policy documents and an over-reliance on voluntary and industry-partnership approaches. Alcoholic beverages and reduced alcohol products are excluded from beverage taxes and labelling requirements in ways which are hard to justify. As with other areas of public health policy, this represents an industry-favoured policy agenda, opposed by health NGOs. Further research is needed to understand the influence of these actors on the engagement of obesity policy with alcohol.

The Role of Print Media in Shaping Public Health Outcomes: A Comprehensive Review

This theoretical study investigates how health-related material in print media affects public health by synthesising current data to grasp its influence in determining public health results. Even with the digital revolution, print media including newspapers, periodicals, and pamphlets remains a major source of information. Key topics include the spread of health information, the way health concerns are framed, and the impact on public perspective and behaviour are underlined in the review. Research show that print media may influence health policy debate, increase knowledge of health concerns, and encourage good practices. Still, these results are much influenced by the accuracy, bias, and depth of the material. Print media's health-related material reflects more general social, economic, and political settings, therefore impacting its presentation and reception. Moreover, the different degrees of media literacy among the people help to control the influence of such material. The evaluation also covers ethical obligations of print media in health communication as well as the possibility of false information. This study offers a complete framework for comprehending the intricate interaction between print media and public health by combining theoretical viewpoints from psychology, public health, and communication studies. The results underline the importance of planned, evidence-based health communication in print media to improve its favourable influence on public health outcomes.

Lowering trade barriers improves income distribution and economic resiliency

The U.S.-China trade war, COVID-19 pandemic and Russian invasion of Ukraine contributed to calls for greater economic self-sufficiency by exposing gaps in international collaboration and the uncertainty of global supply chains. In this study, we apply a comprehensive global modeling framework to enhance understanding of the potential impacts of fragmentation of global value chains. Supporting the general argument toward economic benefits from open markets our analysis contributes to the policy debate in two important dimensions of this phenomenon—distributional impacts and economic resiliency. We find that tariff liberalization and trade facilitation measures implemented by developing countries could not only reduce between-country inequality but also result in progressive within-country income distribution primarily through lowering food prices, as well as increasing unskilled wages. In addition, using a case study of disruption to Thailand’s electronics industry, we find higher resiliency of developing countries to external shocks in the globalized (as opposed to a localized) world.

Trading one problem for two: The case against tobacco bans.

The past two decades have seen growing calls for the "tobacco endgame." Its advocates are united by their commitment to two ideas. First, tobacco-related harms represent a catastrophic health emergency, and second, current tobacco-control approaches are an inadequate response to the scale of that emergency. To endgame advocates, tobacco policy should have more ambitious goals than merely "controlling" tobacco. Instead, it should aim to bring about a smoke-free world. While a range of different policies are included under the umbrella of the "tobacco endgame," the most radical proposal is for a complete ban on tobacco. Its advocates argue that in addition to improving global public health, an effective ban on tobacco would also promote overall autonomy and would have important egalitarian benefits. This article critically examines these arguments for a tobacco ban. I argue that they rely on idealizing assumptions about the likely effects of a ban. Because an effective ban would require robust enforcement to control the illegal market in tobacco, it would be more likely to undermine autonomy and equality than it would be to promote them. By relying on idealizing assumptions and ignoring the likely consequences of a tobacco ban, advocates of a ban obscure, rather than clarify, both the policy debate and the ethical stakes. I conclude by considering the ways that idealizing assumptions should-and should not-play a role in debates about ethical issues in public policy.

Resisting regulation: revealing orders of worth behind the debate over private education regulation in Peru

ABSTRACT Although the regulation of private education has been a disputed topic in academic and policy debates, there is a lack of recognition regarding the underlying structures that inform such opposing viewpoints. Through a sociological understanding of disputes, I propose to see through the lenses of the market to understand the contested visions at play in the regulation of private education in a specific case: a debate in 2018 between private providers and the Ministry of Education that would inform the national regulation in Peru. Specifically, I analyse how private providers justify their right to select and expel students by examining the underlying higher-order principles behind their arguments, or as Boltanski and Thévenot termed them, the ‘orders of worth’. The analysis provides evidence of contradictory ways of seeing education that are located in market, industrial and domestic orders of worth, which suggest a hegemonic project for private education in Peru that also holds open the possibility of challenging it by unpacking the arguments used to support it. These justifications expose the inconsistencies of an unequal educational system that has relied on private education for decades. This paper could prove useful for other countries seeking to reform the regulation of private education.

The territorial taboo: Explaining the public aversion to negotiations in the Ukraine war support coalition

Despite severe and mounting war costs, many in the international coalition supporting Ukraine have publicly expressed strong aversion to negotiations with Russia, and Ukrainian territorial concessions, to end the war. What explains this aversion to negotiations and seeming taboo on territorial concessions? This commentary, drawing particularly on US policy debate, suggests that proclaimed sacred values helps explain this disposition. Ukraine’s war support network is a discursive coalition bound together by three shared narratives about the war and universal values. Stories about international law and territorial integrity, about war crimes and genocide, and about freedom and democracy, render talk about territorial concessions to Russia, as the aggressor state, taboo in different ways. Psychological factors, from commitment problems to hawkish biases, bolster this taboo. The Gaza war, however, has exposed Western sacred values as geographically limited. The territorial taboo disguises tragic trade-offs and the enormous costs of Ukraine’s fight, burdening the country with an unwinnable mission. Any settlement of the war is likely to see the territorial taboo abandoned, in de facto if not de jure terms.

Pluralist economics in an era of polycrisis

Interacting crises at economic, societal, ecological, and geopolitical levels reveal the fragility of connected global systems and give momentum to pluralist economic thinking as a suitable approach to address the complexity and uncertainty of today’s economy. This special issue (SI) explores how young economists, educated in this era, study economic phenomena through pluralist lenses. Due to the structure of interdependent crises and inherent uncertainty, pluralism of values, theory and methods may benefit the academic and policy debate on solutions for today’s political, social, and scientific challenges. Applied to the crisis context, this SI shows a range of research methods and interdisciplinary approaches, reflecting a shift in economic thinking that embraces the complexity, limited predictability, and fragility of socioeconomic systems. The SI aims to promote a dialogue across schools of economic thought to enhance our understanding and contribute to robust and inclusive policy.