University of Essex

GV924-7-SP-CO:
The Politics of Public Policy

The details

Year: 2023/24

Department: Government

Campus: Colchester Campus

Term: Spring

Level: Postgraduate: Level 7

Status: Current

Start date: Monday 15 January 2024

End date: Friday 22 March 2024

Credits: 15

Last updated: 13 April 2023

Requisites for this module

Pre-requisites: (none)

Co-requisites: (none)

Pre and / or co-requisites: (none)

Prohibited modules: (none)

Key module (requisite for): (none)

Key module for

MPP L43012 The Essex MPP,
MPP L43024 The Essex MPP,
MPP L430EB The Essex MPP,
MPP L430JS The Essex MPP,
MA L14312 Economics with Public Policy,
MSC L2P312 Politics, Communications and Data Analytics

Module description

This module introduces the main political arenas and actors that shape public policy in democratic states and beyond.

Students will analyse and debate political conflicts around policymaking in the core arenas of democratic government including elections, parliaments, governments, the bureaucracy, and the judicial system. They will examine the public policy role of interest groups and civil society and explore policymaking beyond and outside of formal governmental arenas as well as in non-democratic states.

Module aims

The aims of this module are:

To introduce the main political actors and institutions involved in policy making and to scrutinise their interplay.

To debate theoretical and analytical perspectives on political conflicts around public policy.

To examine the drivers and mechanisms of policy making beyond and outside of formal governmental arenas and the relations between the state and private interests and among public institutions.

To acquire and practice the application of analytical skills to analyse specific policy processes.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:

Demonstrate a comprehensive awareness of a wide range of political arenas, actors, and institutions that shape public policy.

Demonstrate fluency in theoretical building blocks of how policies are made.

Demonstrate analytical skills to examine specific policy processes and conflicts theoretically and empirically.

Demonstrate the ability to research, analyse, and present policy case studies independently.

Module information

Indicative contents:

Part I: Actors, institutions, and the policy process

Political actors

The policy cycle

Institutions

Part II: Policy conflicts

Ideas and coalitions

Policy networks

Network analysis

Part III: Private, public, and international political actors

Governance

Lobbying

Bureaucracy

Beyond the nation state

Learning and teaching methods

This module will be taught in a weekly 2-hour seminar.

Bibliography

Christoph Knill and Jale Tosun (no date e) Public Policy. Red Globe Press. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/1073378.
Cairney, P. (2019d) Understanding Public Policy. 2nd edition. London: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/1073385.
Weible, C.M. (ed.) (2023d) Theories Of The Policy Process. 5th edition. London: Taylor & Francis Ltd. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/2356162.
Birkland, T.A. (2019c) Introduction to the Policy Process. 5th edition. London: Taylor & Francis Ltd. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/1952345.
McCloskey, D.N. and Ziliak, S.T. (2019b) Economical writing. Third edition. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Available at: https://app.kortext.com/Shibboleth.sso/Login?entityID=https://idp0.essex.ac.uk/shibboleth&target=https://app.kortext.com/borrow/596354.
John, P. (2012b) Analyzing public policy. 2nd ed. Abingdon: Routledge. Available at: https://essex.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/action/uresolver.do?operation=resolveService&package_service_id=4668569880007346&institutionId=7346&customerId=7345.
Shepsle, K.A. (2010) Analyzing politics: rationality, behavior, and institutions. 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton. Available at: https://essex.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/action/uresolver.do?operation=resolveService&package_service_id=4668617920007346&institutionId=7346&customerId=7345.
Tsebelis, G. (1995) ‘Decision Making in Political Systems: Veto Players in Presidentialism, Parliamentarism, Multicameralism and Multipartyism’, British Journal of Political Science, 25(3), pp. 289–325. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123400007225.
Scott, J. and Carrington, P. (2011) The SAGE Handbook of Social Network Analysis. 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road, London EC1Y 1SP United Kingdom : SAGE Publications Ltd. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446294413.
Leifeld, P. and Schneider, V. (2012) ‘Information Exchange in Policy Networks’, American Journal of Political Science, 56(3), pp. 731–744. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5907.2011.00580.x.
Leifeld, P. (2013) ‘Reconceptualizing Major Policy Change in the Advocacy Coalition Framework: A Discourse Network Analysis of German Pension Politics’, Policy Studies Journal, 41(1), pp. 169–198. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12007.
Kramer, Stefan; Ludes, P. et al. (2010) Networks of culture: for professors Winfried Nöth (born September 12, 1944) and Otthein Herzog (born September 25, 1944)?: two pioneers in semiotics and visual information processing. Berlin: Lit.
Leifeld, P. (2016a) ‘Discourse Network Analysis’, in J.N. Victor, A.H. Montgomery, and M. Lubell (eds). Oxford University Press. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190228217.013.25.
Hennig, M. (2013) Studying Social Networks. Frankfurt: Campus Verlag. Available at: https://search-ebscohost-com.uniessexlib.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=832263&site=ehost-live&authtype=sso&custid=s9814295.
Knoke, D. and Yang, S. (2020) Social network analysis. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. Available at: https://methods-sagepub-com.uniessexlib.idm.oclc.org/book/social-network-analysis-3e.
visone tutorials (no date). Available at: https://visone.ethz.ch/wiki/index.php/Tutorials.

The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam	Description	Coursework weighting
Coursework	Policy Case Outline	30%
Coursework	Final Report	60%
Coursework	Presentation	10%

Exam format definitions

Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework	Exam
100%	0%

Reassessment

Coursework	Exam
100%	0%

Module supervisor and teaching staff

Supervisor: Prof Philip Leifeld, email: philip.leifeld@essex.ac.uk.

Teaching staff:

Contact details: Module Supervisor Dr Thomas Winzen thomas.winzen@essex.ac.uk Module Administrator Jamie Seakens govpgquery@essex.ac.uk

Availability

Available to incoming Essex Abroad / Exchange students: Yes

Available to Outside Option: No

Available to Audit: Yes

External examiner

Name: Dr Adrian Florea

Institution: University of Glasgow

Academic role: Senior Lecturer in International Relations

Resources

Teaching materials: Available via Moodle

Lecture recording: Of 40 hours, 40 (100%) hours available to students:
0 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s), module, or event type.

Further information

Department website: Government

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Module Directory

GV924-7-SP-CO:The Politics of Public Policy