Exam 5: Public Problems and Policy Alternatives

Which creative thinking tool begins with an analysis of the status quo as a baseline?

What is involved in problem analysis? Explain how trying to define a simple problem is often political. Give your own example of analyzing a problem (such as illegal immigration).

Statistical information can be displayed in which of the following ways?

The ______ is essential to make sense of a problem, to see how it compares to other concerns in our personal lives or in society, and to estimate what effects a proposal or action might have.

Providing direct payments or benefits to individuals is an example of _____.

The first step in policy making is to ______.

______ involve talking with people in a particular policy network or searching through hearing transcripts, minutes of meetings, newspaper accounts, and the like for pertinent information about a problem and policy alternatives.

In the early 1990s, the state of Wisconsin pilot tested a variety of welfare reform programs such as Workfare and Learnfare. These programs helped the federal government reform its major welfare program in 1996. This is an example of

______ encourage people to act in a certain way because they will gain from doing so.

Public service announcements on television or radio represent what form of government policy tool?

Examining books, journals, and reports regarding a particular problem or solution represents the use of the ______ technique of collecting information.

Examples of ______ include economic projections, population estimates, and future energy needs.

Give an example of an educational policy tool that government uses or could use. Why might policy makers choose to use these tools (rather than another alternative) to deal with a particular public problem?

Local governments often hire nonprofit organizations to provide some of the services government provides, such as treatment for drug addiction or maintenance of trails. These are examples of ______.

Cities that use "visioning" exercises to get citizens to think about what they desire for future development in their community are using ______ to compare policy alternatives.

In 2015, the U.S. government reported that ______ million Americans were poor.

Based on your study of policy tools in Chapter 5, choose an example policy issue to work with (such as illegal immigration, cell phone use while driving, reforming health care, reduction of carbon emissions, or your own). Discuss four of the policy tools available and how they could be applied to this problem, explaining what they are and how they work.

Which of the following illustrates an operational measure of the safety of a community?

______ refers to the process of the government choosing which specific policy instruments will be used to address a public problem.

______ are abundant for most contemporary public problems.