AMPG 25A00 - Public Policy Studies

This course introduces the theories, concepts and models of public policy studies. Highlighting the importance of public policies in shaping relationships between the government and the governed, it will help students to unpack the complexity of the policy process, that is how public problems emerge and public policies are developed in order to address them. Insofar as public policies are considered a critical dimension of governmental activities, this requires going beyond the mere study of their substance: while interesting, it only provides a limited understanding of the contradictions inherent to public policy-making and of the changing nature of the policy process over time and across different political and institutional contexts. By contrast, shifting the focus on how the public policy process works contributes to the opening of the “Black box” of public policy making and going beyond a managerial and functionalist approach to the policy process. In order to do so, the course will guide students through the various stages of the policy process, including problem framing agenda-setting, decision-making, policy implementation and evaluation. It will also assess the way various actors, interests and institutions shape the policy process and in return, the extent to which public policies account for economic, social and political changes. Last but not least, it will also discuss the international and multilevel dimensions of public policy-making, as well as its complex interplay with other forms of regulation (e.g., market, networks). This will be done by drawing on a large range of examples across policy domains (e.g., environment, transport, health, education, etc.) and different regional contexts.

In keeping with the interdisciplinary nature of public policy studies, the course builds on theories, concepts and methods that were developed in political science, law, sociology and economics.

• A Press kit, that is a reasoned analysis and discussion of a policy issue on a topic chosen by students and drawing on their own dataset (3.000 words) (40%).
• Short presentation in class, by alphabetical order 10%
• One final exam of 2 hours, consisting of short questions and an essay question 50%