Comparative Public Policy (Textbooks in Policy Studies)

657 Pages·2018·4.046 MB·English

by  Anneliese Dodds

Textbooks in Policy Studies
Series Editors
Paul Cairney
History and Politics, University of Stirling, Stirling, United Kingdom
Jale Tosun
Wissenschaft, Raum 03.045, Heidelberg Univ, Inst. Politische, Heidelberg,
Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Karin Ingold
Institute for Political Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Daniel Nohrstedt
Department of Government, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
Christopher M. Weible
University of Colorado - Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
Claire A. Dunlop
Department of Politics, University of Exeter, Exeter, Devon, United
Kingdom
Tanya Heikkila
University of Colorado - Denver, Denver, Colorado, USA
Allan McConnell
Department of Government, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
Jennifer Curtin
Department of Political Studies, University of Auckland, Auckland, New
Zealand
Jordi Dıé z
University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
This series offers sophisticated yet concise and accessible texts
which capture today’s diverse programme of policy studies, from
books which introduce ‘classic’ approaches - such as the ‘policy
cycle‘ - to those which familiarise readers with the latest
developments in policy theory, making and practice.
Textbooks in Policy Studies
Series Editor: Paul Cairney, University of Stirling, UK
Editorial Advisory Group: Jennifer Curtin, University of Auckland,
New Zealand; Jordi Diez, University of Guelph, Canada; Claire Dunlop,
University of Exeter, UK; Tanya Heikkila, University of Colorado Denver,
USA; Karin Ingold, University of Bern, Switzerland; Allan McConnell,
University of Sydney, Australia; Daniel Nohrstedt, Uppsala University,
Sweden; Jale Tosun, Heidelberg University, Germany; Chris Weible,
University of Colorado Denver, USA.
There has never been a more important time in which to
understand the dynamics of public policy. Key events across the globe
have prompted debate about political crisis, from ‘post truth’ and
emotionally-driven politics to the sense that international institutions
or agreements are not well-equipped to solve pressing global crises
such as public health epidemics, poverty and climate change. Yet, a key
feature of policy studies is the identi�ication and explanation of
policymaking stability and policy continuity, with salient issues
gathering most of our attention while most issues are processed out of
the public spotlight. A major problem for democracy is that few people
know about the choices governments make in their name.
We need as many perspectives as possible on how such policy
dynamics operate, and what effect they have on developments in
different regions and policy areas. Such developments will not be
covered fully by research monographs, with a limited focus and
audience. We also need textbooks which combine academic rigour with
a broad analytical focus and an appeal to a wide audience. This series
helps develop this focus on research and learning, serving the global
market of undergraduate, postgraduate and professional education in
public policy and related disciplines such as political science and social
policy.
PUBLISHED
Anneliese Dodds
Comparative Public Policy (second edition)
FORTHCOMING
Paul Cairney
Understanding Public Policy (second edition)
Christoph Knill and Jale Tosun
Public Policy: A New Introduction (second edition)
Madeleine Pill
Governing Cities: Politics and Policy
PLANNED
Researching Public Policy
Global Public Policy
…and more
More information about this series at
http:// www. springer. com/s eries/1 5710
Anneliese Dodds
Comparative Public Policy
2nd ed. 2018
Anneliese Dodds
Aston University, School of Languages and Social Sciences Aston
University, Birmingham, United Kingdom
Textbooks in Policy Studies
ISBN 978-1-137-60704-1 e-ISBN 978-1-137-60871-0
https://doi.org/10.26777/978-1-137-60871-0
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© Anneliese Dodds, under exclusive licence to Macmillan Publishers
Ltd, part of Springer Nature 2012, 2018
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Acknowledgements
The �irst edition of this book was produced in 2013. It drew then on
many helpful interactions with a variety of colleagues at King’s College
London and Aston University, particularly Ken Young, John
Meadowcroft, Karen West, Naonori Kodate, Pam Lowe, Simon Green
and Crispian Fuller, and on insights from successive generations of
students at both institutions. I was also indebted to Richard Parry and
Mark Thatcher for having provided me with fascinating introductions
to both public policy and administration. Steven Kennedy and Helen
Caunce were immensely supportive as editors of the �irst book.
This new edition was produced as an extra-curricular project whilst
I was serving as initially a Member of the European Parliament, and
then (from June 2017) as a Member of the UK Parliament. Lloyd
Langman and Tuur Driesser from Palgrave were both supportive and
patient during this process. Paul Cairney, as series editor, and a number
of anonymous reviewers provided comments which have
immeasurably strengthened the book. I cannot thank them enough for
their meticulous and constructive engagement. I am also grateful for
the support of Aston University, where I now serve as an Honorary
Professor. Finally, I would like to thank Ed Turner and little Freddie and
Isabella Dodds for their patience and forbearance whilst I worked on
the text during holidays and evenings.
Anneliese Dodds
Introduction
Whenever you travel to a new place, you immediately engage in
comparison with ‘how things are at home’. Different sights, tastes,
sounds, smells and (body-) language often assault the senses as soon as
you enter a new environment. Yet the chances are that the local and
national government probably faces the same dilemmas as do
governments everywhere else: how to keep the population safe and
healthy, and how to pay for doing so.
The ways in which governments deal with these dilemmas offer
fascinating patterns of similarity and difference. Comparative public
policy research investigates these patterns and seeks to understand
them. First, it can help us understand policy-making and its
consequences in foreign nations, moving us beyond national
stereotypes and prejudices and towards a genuine awareness of the
impact of local context on decision-makers and implementers. With
insights from comparative research, we can place ourselves in the shoes
of foreign governments and civil servants and see through their eyes,
indicating new ways in which policy con�licts can be resolved between
nations.
Just as important, however, comparative research can also
illuminate policy processes in our own country. It provides ‘free
lessons’ on how to make policy differently, and awakens us to the
contingency of ‘how things are done’ in our own country. It shows how
the ‘status quo’ is often more re�lective of habit and tradition than
comprising a uniquely rational set of affairs. Comparative research can,
thus, empower individuals to challenge those with a vested interest in
current policies. At the same time, comparative research can provide
‘negative lessons’, warning policy-makers against making potentially
expensive or harmful policy mistakes.
Comparing policy in different nations can also provide us with a
deeper and richer understanding of the fundamental drivers of policy-
making and how it impacts on the world. It can indicate where and why
public policy trends develop, and why they may be absent in different
contexts. Increasingly, comparative research is also unveiling how
international processes impact on policy-makers across different
countries and sectors. It has never been more important for
researchers and policy-makers to look beyond national con�ines in
order to better understand the world, and how to change it.