From formulation to implementation, an approach to the analysis of social policy through the lens of research Analyzing Social Policy prepares professionals and students to make better informed decisions related to identifying and understanding the intricacies and potential impact of social policymaking and enactment on their organization as well as their individual responsibilities, goals, and objectives.

Authors Mary Katherine O'Connor and F. Ellen Netting thoroughly examine various approaches to the analysis of social policies and how these approaches provide the knowledge, multiple perspectives, and other resources to understand and grasp the nuances of social policy in all its complexity.

Comprehensive and based on research, Analyzing Social Policy explores:



An overview of the practice of social policy analysis


The role of research in guiding policy analysis


The idea of policy analyses as research


Themes, assumptions, and major theories that undergird rational models of policy analysis


Nonrational themes, assumptions, and major theories informing nontraditional interpretive and critical approaches to policy analysis


Strategies for applying selected models and approaches when engaging in policy analysis as research



Providing practitioners and students with a set of tools that can be used to enhance an understanding of what constitutes policy as well as acceptable standards for critical analysis of policy, this resource enables policy advocates—regardless of their level—to be political, strategic, and critical in their work.