A systems‐theoretical exploration for understanding and enhancing policy design
Expanding an analytical locus with implications for policy studies
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 7169246 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Guswin De Wee (0000-0002-1249-1121, Nelson Mandela University Port Elizabeth South Africa, corresponding author), Kwame Asmah‐Andoh (Nelson Mandela University Port Elizabeth South Africa), Amina Jakoet‐salie (0000-0002-1479-7255, Nelson Mandela University Port Elizabeth South Africa) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 1564-1577 |
| Publication date | 2025-11-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Systems Research and Behavioral Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1092-7026 • E-ISSN: 1099-1743 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/sres.3044 |
| OpenAlex | W4400665338 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 52 |
Policy design has two analytical domains, policy design‐as‐formulation and policy design‐as‐content. The latter study policies as codified and constructed output of the formulation process, which is an activity directed to the process. The analytical concept ‘structural logic’ emerged as an internal property of policy text and has been understudied, perhaps because of the lack of methods and understanding. The paper is a systems‐theoretic exploration of systems assumptions and policy designs. The paper contributes to the theoretical underpinnings of the nature of policy design (as conceptual systems) and how systems‐based assumptions can help understand structural logic by providing a locus for studying and measuring policy element interaction. Findings suggest that it is in the interactions of those elements and connections (policy statements/propositions/directives), corresponding to the causal relations in the real world wherein the effectiveness of policy designs lies (level of structure). The exploration posits that the deep structural similarities between the domains of systems are so ecologically parallel that the insights from one system allows for similarities to be exploited and transferred to understanding the other. The paper provides insights for overcoming policy design limitations and a new way for studying policy element interaction for improving its effects in policy implementation
Biology · Business · Management science · Community Health and Development · Complex Systems and Decision Making · Computer Science · Engineering · Evaluation and Performance Assessment
A Phenomenology of Institutions
Governing the Commons
Policy Problems and Policy Design
Designing for Policy Effectiveness
Drift and conversion
Analyzing Foreign Policy
Design Principles for Policy Mixes
Policy capacity in public administration
The Politics of Policy Design and Implementation
The missing piece of the integrative studies puzzle
The expediency of policy integration
Tales From the Crypt
Policy Coordination and Integration
Designing for adaptation
The contextualist turn and schematics of institutional fit
Resilience and robustness in policy design
From the ‘old’ to the ‘new’ policy design
Addressing fragmented government action
Politics, Economics and Welfare
From tools to toolkits in policy design studies
Conceptualising policy design in the policy process
Systematically Pinching Ideas
Governance Without Government? Rethinking Public Administration
The Analysis of Design or the Design of Analysis
The Ambitions of Policy Design
Instruments for Policy Integration
| Highly cited | No |
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