Policy Analysis System

Introduction:
The study of public policy prepares and helps us to cope better with the future. It improves our knowledge about the society. An important part of the study of public policy is concerned with society’s future. In most developed countries, policy analysis has been substantially stimulated by the governments increased corner for public policy problems. The attractiveness of the government as say research sponsor has also been enhanced. The acquisition and dissemination of information about public policies has become a major theme in social sciences, specially in the discipline of public administration. The use of such knowledge for making, managing and evaluating public policy is generally turned ‘policy analysis’.

Policy analysis:
Policy analysis is a technique measure organizational effectiveness through the examination and evaluation of the effect of a program. Public policy analysis is thus nothing more than estimating the impact of public policy on the government programs. The dictionary of public administration defines policy analysis as “a systematic and data based alternative to intuitive judgements about the effects of policy or policy options. It is used “ For problem assessment and monitoring,

a) As a ‘before the fact end’, decision tool, and
b) See for evaluation’.

Policy analysis as a technique puts data to use in, or deciding about, estimating and measuring the consequences of public policies. It provides maximum information with minimal cost about the-
1. the likely consequences of proposed policies, and
2. secondly, the actual consequence of the policies already adopted.
To achieve these two purposes of proposed, various methods or approaches are applied. Among the principal methodologies are-

a) systems analysis and simulation;
b) cost benefit analysis;
c) new approaches to budgeting;
d) policy experimentation; and
e) policy evaluation.
Stage:

The stage in policy analysis can be put as follows:
1. Identifying the underlying problem: For an analytic approach, the first step is to identify whether and why there is a problem at all. Defining the problem involves moving from mundane descriptions to a more abstracts, conceptual plane. Here, an attempt should be made to diagnose the form of market failure that is confronted.

2. Determining alternatives for policy choice: The next step is to determine alternative course of action. Government intervention can take any from. It is important to determine which kind of intervention is most positive in any particular situation.

3. Forecasting the consequences: Having identified the underlying problem and having determined the alternatives for policy choice, what are the consequences of each of the alternatives? For this, the policy analyst will turn to a relevant model for forecasting consequences.

4. Evaluating the outcomes: The next step relates to evaluating the policy choices. It is difficult to have a rational policy choice unless the relative merits of alternative options are compared.

5. Make a choice: It is the last step in policy analysis. The situation may be so simple for the policy maker that he can simply look at the consequences predicted for each alternative and select the one that is best.
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                                                   Figure: The Process of Analysis
Models of policy analysis:
System model for policy analysis:
The policy-making process has been regarded as a black box which converts the demands of the society into policies. Davis Easton in his Analysis of Political Systems argued that the political system was that part of the society engaged in the ‘authoritative allocation of values”

Inputs                Decision making process                 Outputs                  Policy outcomes

                                                      Figure: The Political System.

Inputs are seen as the physical, social, economical and political products of the environment. They are received into the political system in the form of both demands and support.
Rational model: Rational is considered to be the yardstick of wisdom in policy making. Two fundamental assumptions are the heart of the model. Decision makers are purposive and goal oriented.
(a) Decision makers always wanted to achieve their goal in the most formed, analytic, through and efficient manner.

The rational precept emphasizes that policy maker is making a choice among policy alternatives on rational grounds. Rational policy making is “to choose the one best option”
To select a rational policy, policy makers must-
 Know all the society’s values preferences and their relative weights.
 Know all the policy alternatives available
 Know all the consequences of each policy alternatives.
 Calculate the ratio of achievement to sacrificed social values for each policy alternatives.
 Select the most efficient policy alternatives.
 The predictive capacity to foresee accurately the consequences of alternatives policy and the intelligence to calculate correctly to ratio of costs benefits.
Finally rational policy making requires a decision-making system that facilitates rationality in policy formation. A diagram of such a system is shown in below

                                     Figure: A rational model of a decision system.

Limitation:
1. To be agreed upon all societal values is impossible.
2. The many conflicting values cannot be compared or weighted.
3. Power and influence affect during consideration social values.
4. Lack of motivation to make decision on the basis of social goals to politicians because politicians are hunger after power, status and wining re-election.
5. Large investment in existing programs and policies prevent policy makers from reconsidering alternatives foreclosed by previous decision.
Collect information about the alternative and its consequences is not easy.