Policy Analysis and Program Planning: Frameworks and Pitfalls
Policy Cycle
Know the stages: agenda setting, formulation, adoption, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and termination or succession. Distinguish policy (broad direction) from program (coordinated set of projects) and project (specific intervention). Review rational-comprehensive vs. incremental models, bounded rationality, and garbage can decision-making.
Analysis Tools
Understand problem definition, stakeholder analysis, SWOT, cost-benefit analysis, cost-effectiveness analysis, and logic models (inputs, activities, outputs, outcomes, impact). Know the difference between outputs (products) and outcomes (results). Review evidence-based policy, theory of change, and participatory planning (e.g., local development councils).
Traps
Questions confuse outputs with outcomes, or efficiency (cost per output) with effectiveness (achieving outcomes). They also mislabel monitoring (ongoing tracking) as evaluation (periodic assessment of results). Watch for options that skip problem definition and jump to solutions.
Rule of Thumb
Use the logic chain: inputs → activities → outputs → outcomes → impact. If the option describes a product, it is an output; if it describes a change in people or conditions, it is an outcome.
Worked example: A training program conducts 10 sessions (output); participants apply skills and reduce errors (outcome); long-term service quality improves (impact).