When societies are confronted with major, disruptive emergencies, the fate of politicians and public policies hangs in balance. Both government actors their critics will try to escape blame for occurrence, consolidate/strengthen political capital, advance/defend they stand for. Crises thus generate framing contests interpret events, causes, responsibilities lessons involved ways that suit purposes visions future policy directions. This article dissects these processes articulates foundations...

Modern societies are widely considered to harbour an increased propensity for breakdowns of their critical infrastructure (CI) systems. While such have proven rather rare, Hurricane Katrina has demonstrated the catastrophic consequences breakdowns. This article explores how public authorities can effectively prepare cope with these rare events. Drawing from literature on crisis and disaster management, we examine strengths weaknesses traditional approaches preparation response. We argue that...

Abstract Policy protagonists are keen to claim that policy is successful while opponents more likely frame policies as failures. The reality outcomes often somewhere in between these extremes. An added difficulty has multiple dimensions, succeeding some respects but not others, according facts and their interpretation. This paper sets out a framework designed capture the bundles of indicate how or unsuccessful been. It reviews existing literature on evaluation improvement, public value, good...

The world is in the grip of a crisis that stands unprecedented living memory. COVID-19 pandemic urgent, global scale, and massive impacts. Following Harold D. Lasswell's goal for policy sciences to offer insights into unfolding phenomena, this commentary draws on lessons literature understand dynamics related COVID-19. We explore ways which scientific technical expertise, emotions, narratives influence decisions shape relationships among citizens, organizations, governments. discuss varied...

Crisis management logic suggests that planning and preparing for crisis should be a vital part of institutional policy toolkits. This paper explores the difficulties in translating this ideal into practice. It focuses on four key difficulties. First, crises disasters are low probability events but they place large demands resources have to compete against front-line service provision. Second, contingency requires ordering coherence possible threats, yet is not amenable being packaged such...

Claims that a particular policy has been 'success' are commonplace in political life. However, few of these claims justified any systematic way. This article seeks to remedy this omission by offering heuristic which practitioners and academics can utilize approach the question whether is, or was, successful. It builds initially on two sets literature: Boyne's work public sector improvement; Bovens et al. success, failure evaluation. We discuss epistemological issues involved it is possible...

The discipline of public policy has struggled to come terms with how we may conceive ‘policy failure’. It tends assume either that failure is self-evident or it can be assessed by means examining the gap between government goals and outcomes. Often, there are multiple caveats seem too difficult address – particularly role perceptions, which in turn often dependent on whether not supported. This ground-breaking article builds refines existing literature. turns its head methodological...

Abstract In recent decades, the policy sciences have struggled to come terms with significance of inaction in public policy. Inaction refers instances when policymakers ‘do nothing’ about societal issues. This article aims put study on a new footing. It presents five-part typology forms before focusing detail core drivers found at four policy-making loci: individuals (coping behaviour), organisations (information pathologies), governments (agenda control and protection) networks...

Crisis management research has largely ignored one of the most pressing challenges political leaders are confronted with in wake a large-scale extreme event: how to cope what is commonly called blame game. In this article, we provide heuristic help understand leader responses aftermath crises, emphasizing crucial role their leadership style on Inquiries. After integrating theoretical and empirical findings crisis styles, illustrate our by applying it Bush administration's response Hurrican...

Abstract Use of metaphors is a staple feature how we understand policy processes – none more so than the use ‘policy stages’/'cycles’ and ‘multiple streams’. Yet even allowing for necessary parsimony metaphors, former often criticised its lack ‘real world’ engagement with agency, power, ideology, turbulence complexity, while latter focuses only on agenda‐setting but at times has been utilised, limited results, to later stages process. This article seeks explore advance opportunities...

The stages/policy cycle, multiple streams, and Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) approaches to understanding policy processes, all have analytical value although also attracting substantive criticism. An obvious direction for research is determine whether the streams framework ACF can be refined applied other dimensions of policy‐making set out in cycle model. This article argues that extending modifying Kingdon's beyond agenda‐setting stage best suited this endeavour. Doing so makes it...

For close to three decades multiple frameworks of policy-making have served as competitive characterizations policy processes. All claim provide accounts that capture diverse factors such changing governance norms, actors and ideas which drive programme interventions outputs. Paradoxically, the resilience different models cycle framework streams has been accompanied by numerous critiques they are "incomplete" even divorced from real world. This article presents an effort synthesize reconcile...

All governments are vulnerable to policy failure but our understanding of the nature and causes is highly underdeveloped. This contribution, written from a public perspective, sets out framework for these issues as applied foreign policy. In doing so, it seeks cross-disciplinary fertilization thinking that uses messy contested reality fundamentally key – rather than barrier advancing phenomenon referred variously fiascos, disasters, blunders failures.

Australia and New Zealand are routinely presented as sharing more in common than the federal unitary systems separating them. As two modernising Antipodean settler societies, their governing trajectories have embraced waves of public administration/management reform. Shared pathways seem matched by relative, although precarious fragile, early successes crisis challenges COVID-19. This article contextualises examines one crucial point separation: very different governance routes to such...

Study of the 'politics' wicked problems has tended to be ad hoc, scattered across multiple disciplines. This article seeks address this gap in our understanding. As well as traditional policy challenges issues, elites also have consider impact on political reputations, control agendas and promotion particular ideological/governance trajectories. In context, focusing issues presenting both for elites, examines different responses these risks, approaches thinking about societal capacities...

This article provides a roadmap to help analysts approach the under-researched phenomena of policy-making driven some extent by an attempt show that governments and broader governing systems have policy in place manage tough issues, rather than addressing deeper causal factors problem. The metaphor placebo policies is used explore these supported novel secondary 'policy trap' (expectations on being greater their capacity realise). Examining political value 'doing something', it suggests...