Usable knowledge in public policy

By David Adams. 2004

124 citations recorded by the source corpus.

The range of usable information for public policy is complex and distributed but policy debate is still dominated by instrumental and centralised information constructed and controlled by functional and managerial experts - the creed of expertise. In recent years other types of 'usable' knowledge has begun to flow back into policy streams and in particular local knowledge (sometimes called community knowledge) is staging a major revival. This inductive knowledge is now being merged with the deductive paradigms of new public management. In the first section I illustrate the key features of expert-based knowledge and how it pervades our thinking about how policy happens and the valued content of policy. Then I outline the types of usable information that flows into government and therefore constitutes the basic building blocks for knowledge. Finally, I drill down to expand on the idea of community knowledge and illustrate what it actually looks like.

Subfields: Political Science and International Relations, Public Administration

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/a681142ccb8780a54fd02e3ea03dd355c92d8ac8

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In Political Science and International Relations

In Public Administration

Citations in the corpus

Policy analysis and policy work in federal systems: Policy advice and its contribution to evidence-based policy-making in multi-level governance systems (2010, background): “…in the sub-national analysis reported above can be thought of as working in an interactive ‘‘client-advice’’ style somewhat removed from both the traditional ‘‘rational’’ style promoted by textbook and policy schools (Adams, 2004; Baehr, 1981; Banfield, 1977; Lindblom & Cohen, 1979; Shulock, 1999).”
Policy formulation, governance shifts and policy influence: location and content in policy advisory systems (2012, background): “See for example Rein and White, 1977, and Lindblom and Cohen, 1979, and the very similar arguments made 20 to 25 years later in Shulock, 1999, and Adams, 2004.”
Policy analytical capacity: The supply and demand for policy analysis in government (2015, background): “This capacity for policy analysis is a more focussed concept than overall policy capacity and involves competences and capabilities involved in effective knowledge acquisition and utilization in the policy process (Adams, 2004; Leeuw, 1991; Lynn, 1978; MacRae, 1991; Radaelli, 1995).”
Reconsidering evidence-based policy: Key issues and challenges (2010, methodology): “There has been a gradual incorporation of rigorous research evidence into public policy debates and internal public sector processes for policy evaluation and program improvement (Adams, 2004; Banks, 2009; Boaz, Grayson, Levitt, & Solebury, 2008; Maynard, 2006).”