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A guide to policy analysis as a research method

journal contribution
posted on 2019-10-01, 00:00 authored by Jennifer BrowneJennifer Browne, B Coffey, K Cook, S Meiklejohn, C Palermo
Summary Policy analysis provides a way for understanding how and why governments enact certain policies, and their effects. Public health policy research is limited and lacks theoretical underpinnings. This article aims to describe and critique different approaches to policy analysis thus providing direction for undertaking policy analysis in the field of health promotion. Through the use of an illustrative example in nutrition it aims to illustrate the different approaches. Three broad orientations to policy analysis are outlined: (i) Traditional approaches aim to identify the ‘best’ solution, through undertaking objective analyses of possible solutions. (ii) Mainstream approaches focus on the interaction of policy actors in policymaking. (iii) Interpretive approaches examine the framing and representation of problems and how policies reflect the social construction of ‘problems’. Policy analysis may assist understanding of how and why policies to improve nutrition are enacted (or rejected) and may inform practitioners in their advocacy. As such, policy analysis provides researchers with a powerful tool to understand the use of research evidence in policymaking and generate a heightened understanding of the values, interests and political contexts underpinning policy decisions. Such methods may enable more effective advocacy for policies that can lead to improvements in health.

History

Journal

Health Promotion International

Volume

34

Pagination

1032-1044

Location

England

ISSN

0957-4824

eISSN

1460-2245

Language

en

Publication classification

C2 Other contribution to refereed journal

Issue

5

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)