Deck 11: Science and Theory in the Study of Public Policy Need to Add Some NPF

Question 1

A model developed by Paul Sabatier that states that interest groups are organized in policy communities within a policy domain is called the

A)framework model.
B)advocacy coalition framework.
C)window of opportunity model.
D)interest group framework.
E)policy community framework.

Answer 1

advocacy coalition framework.

Question 2

The idea that interest groups are organized in policy communities within a policy domain is associated with which model of the policy process?

A)punctuated equilibrium.
B)systems model.
C)advocacy coalition framework.
D)streams metaphor.

Answer 2

advocacy coalition framework.

Question 3

Within the Narrative Policy Framework (NPF), all of the following are elements of narrative form except

A)Plot
B)Narrative strategy
C)Setting
D)Characters

Answer 3

Narrative strategy

Question 4

When a window of opportunity opens for a particular policy area, this increases the chances that a window will open for a related policy area, this is an example of:

A)A focusing event.
B)a spillover.
C)indicators.
D)agenda setting.

Question 5

Which one is NOT one of the three "streams" in John Kingdon's model of the public policy process?

A)politics stream.
B)policy stream.
C)problem stream.
D)implementation stream.

Question 6

The Advocacy Coalition Framework illustrates

A)the important role of interest groups and group alliances.
B)how members of congress can work together to set the national agenda.
C)the centrality of the executive branch in setting the national agenda.
D)the importance of arguing claims before the Supreme Court.

Question 7

Harold Laswell's call for the creation of a policy science was based on a desire to

A)find the best solutions to practical problems.
B)simply develop excellent theories of social science.
C)train policy analysts.
D)develop sound social science theory that would help to solve societal problems.

Question 8

In scholarly research, a good theory should

A)generate hypotheses that can be tested.
B)solve pressing societal problems.
C)be easy to understand.
D)conform to what people know about how the world works.

Question 9

Evidence gathered using the scientific method is superior to anecdotal evidence because

A)scientists are smarter than other people.
B)the scientific method generally yields better knowledge than do anecdotes.
C)it's easier to gather evidence using the scientific method.
D)because there is only one scientific method that all scientists use consistently.

Question 10

The way we investigate social and natural phenomena owes a great deal to what major historical movement?

A)The Enlightenment.
B)The Dark Ages.
C)The Renaissance.
D)The Industrial Revolution.

Question 11

Controversial questions and problems that cannot be weighed and addressed through science alone are called

A)nonscientific problems.
B)trans-scientific problems.
C)wicked problems.
D)intractable problems.

Question 12

Punctuated equilibrium is the term used by Baumgartner and Jones to describe policy making and change in terms of

A)long-term periods of stability in policy with short bursts of policy change.
B)the joining of problems, policies, and politics in "windows of opportunity" for change.
C)how groups join into larger alliances to promote shared interests.
D)the idea that boundedly rational people come together in "institutions" to pursue policy goals.

Question 13

Kingdon's "streams metaphor" describes policy making and change in terms of

A)long-term periods of stability in policy with short bursts of policy change.
B)the joining of problems, policies, and politics in "windows of opportunity" for change.
C)how groups join into larger alliances to promote shared interests.
D)the idea that boundedly rational people come together in "institutions" to pursue policy goals.

Question 14

The "Institutional Analysis and Development" framework, associated with Elinor Ostrom's work, describes policy making and change in terms of

A)long-term periods of stability in policy with short bursts of policy change.
B)the joining of problems, policies, and politics in "windows of opportunity" for change.
C)how groups join into larger alliances to promote shared interests.
D)the idea that boundedly rational people come together in "institutions" to pursue policy goals.

Question 15

Which of the following policy scholars was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics for their work?

A)Frank Baumgartner and Bryan Jones, the proponents of the idea of "punctuated equilibrium" and policy change.
B)Elinor Ostrom, the proponent of Institutional Analysis and Development.
C)John Kingdon, for his work on the "streams" metaphor.
D)Paul Sabatier, for his work on the Advocacy Coalition Framework .

Question 16

In the Advocacy Coalition Framework, Sabatier argues that most policy communities consist of how many advocacy coalitions?

A)one
B)ten
C)two to four
D)dozens

Question 17

Which of the following is an accurate characterization of the type of approach institutional analysis and development (IAD) take?

A)institutional predictive choice
B)free will
C)institutional rational choice
D)constrained choice

Question 18

Define the concept of "punctuated equilibrium" as it applies to the public policy process.

Question 19

Explain the difference between anecdotes and evidence.

Question 20

Explain how "the science of public policy and policy analysis have generally fallen short of his vision of a broadly useful policy science" under Laswell's conception of a policy science.

Question 21

Explain how the IAD arose out of the study of common pool resources.

Question 22

Explain why a "model" can be useful even if it is an approximation that doesn't account for every aspect of a social process.

Question 23

Explain what the Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) is, and how it contributes to approaches of studying the policy process.

Question 24

Discuss some potential causes of breakdowns in policy monopolies within Baumgartner and Jones's Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (PET).

Question 25

Explain why day to day discussions about politics are often more about stories and symbols than about "scientifically" gathered data.

Question 26

Explain why anecdotal evidence is so often used-and is so often useful-in policy debates.

Question 27

Draw a diagram of Kingdon's "streams metaphor" of the policy process, and label its important elements.

Question 28

The advocacy coalition framework states that the balance of political power between groups of interests remains relatively stable over long periods of time, punctuated by relatively sudden shifts in public understanding of problems and in the balance of power between the groups.

Question 29

According to the Narrative Policy Framework (NPF), narratives have both a generalizable and discernible structure.

Question 30

The political stream is independent of the problems and policy streams. .

Question 31

According to Dye (1992), a good model should suggest hypotheses about both the causes and consequences of public policy.

Question 32

Thomas Kuhn would say that the academic field of public policy has no dominant paradigm.

Question 33

Anecdotes can mobilize people to seek policy change.

Question 34

Anecdotes are often contradicted by empirical evidence.

Question 35

In the institutional analysis and development (IAD) approach, institutions which make rules may be intangible.

Question 36

Paul Sabatier argues that policy scholars should seek to test and refine existing theories, rather than create entirely new theories of the policy process.

Question 37

The Narrative Policy Framework adopts the position that we cannot study policy narratives scientifically

Question 38

Theories of the public policy process have no value for policy makers because they are just "theories."

Question 39

Theories of the policy process are best considered "middle-range" theories.

Question 40

Theories of the policy process tend to be sweeping and all encompassing, and account for all relevant aspects of the process.

Question 41

Scientific evidence almost always reflects "common sense" notions of how real policy making works. .

Question 42

Better scientific evidence will always be more influential in policy debates than good stories or anecdotes.

Question 43

In the institutional analysis and development (IAD) approach, rules exist at independent levels, isolated from others.

Question 44

In the punctuated equilibrium model, a policy monopoly nearly never loses control over policy ideas.