Public Policy Analysis

A Critical Overview

Abstract

This paper investigates the concept of public policy analysis that has been developed and refined over the past 50
years. Its purpose is to examine the concept of public policy analysis by clarifying its definition, conceptual models of
public policy analysis, steps of policy analysis and six analytical dimensions for analyzing public policy. In most realworld policy situations there are many possible alternatives, many uncertainties, many stakeholders and many
consequences of interest. Also, there is usually no single decision maker and little chance of obtaining agreement on a
single set of preferences among the consequences. As a result, there is no way to identify an optimal solution. Instead,
policy analysis uses a variety of tools to develop relevant information and present it to the parties involved in the
policymaking process in a manner that helps them come to a decision. The paper discusses a brief definition of public
policy, analytical exploration into the conceptual models of public policy analysis, steps of policy analysis and
dimensions and relationships among the dimensions for analysing public policy