Scott R. Furlong

Michael E. Kraft

Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives

Public Policy

With the right information, we can develop public policies that work better. All too often, public policy textbooks offer a basic grounding in the policy process without the benefit of integrating the use of policy analysis. Michael E. Kraft and Scott R. Furlong take a different tack. Public Policy: Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives, Seventh Edition helps students understand how and why policy analysis is used to assess policy alternatives. The text encourages them to not only question the assumptions of policy analyst, but also recognize how these strategies are used in the support of political arguments. The authors introduce and fully integrate an evaluative approach to policy to encourage critical and creative thinking on issues ranging from health care to climate change. From a concise review of institutions, policy actors, and major theoretical models to a discussion of the nature of policy analysis and its practice, Kraft and Furlong show students how to employ evaluative criteria in six substantive policy areas. Students come away with the analytic tools they need to understand that the motivations of policy actors—both within and outside of government—influence a complex yet comprehensible policy agenda.

In Public Policy: Politics, Analysis, and Alternatives, students come to understand how and why policy analysis is used to assess policy alternatives. To encourage critical and creative thinking on issues ranging from the federal deficit to health care reform to climate change, authors Michael Kraft and Scott Furlong introduce and fully integrate an evaluative approach to policy. The Sixth Edition of Public Policy offers a fully revised, concise review of institutions, policy actors, and major theoretical models as well as a discussion of the nature of policy analysis and its practice. Both the exposition and data have been updated to reflect major policy controversies and developments through the end of 2016, including new priorities of the Donald Trump administration.

Cornelius M. Kerwin

NEW TO THIS EDITION: New scholarship from the past five to six years provides readers with the latest research and analysis in rulemaking. Updated information on the Obama administration and the beginning of the Trump Administration puts rulemaking in context and demonstrates how different administrations use this tool. New tables and charts reflect the most recent data available to better illustrate the trends and patterns of rulemaking. KEY FEATURES: The authors comment on various pieces of empirical evidence available to measure the frequency, complexity, and impact of rules, providing insight into the complex picture of this vital function that waxes and wanes over time. The book's incisive coverage helps readers develop an understanding of rulemaking that is vital to an educated grasp of the dynamics of American policymaking and politics.

Scott R. Furlong

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