Principal investigator: Eduarda Miller de Figueiredo
Location of the Intervention: United Kingdom
Sample Size:
Sector: Public policies
Primary Variable of Interest: –
Type of Intervention: Data analysis, interviews
Methodology: Others
Summary
The use of evidence in policymaking has been growing over the years. However, there is a scarcity of studies on the process of this policymaking. Thus, based on his notes from his work as a policy consultant in the United Kingdom in 2009, the author discusses this evidence-based policymaking process. His findings suggest eight key themes ranging from commitment to the use of evidence to totemic rigidity, and the issue of uncertainties. He concludes, therefore, that there is an excess of evidence, but it is inconclusive.
- Policy Problem
In recent years there has been much discussion surrounding “evidence-based policy” (Black, 2001; Boaz and Pawson, 2005). Hill's (2009) study observes in its analysis a scarcity of research on the process and definition of policy formulation, which tends to be examined through the analysis of results rather than through close observation. There is also a difficulty in defining evidence, since for Monaghan (2008), evidence is itself a politically charged discussion.
For the purposes of this article, policy formulation was considered to refer to the organized attempt to select objectives and methods for government action.
That being said, this article sought to contribute to the development of an explanation for the use of evidence in policymaking, using ethnographic data from a study on policymaking practices in the UK government.
- Implementation and Evaluation Context
The author recounts working as a policy consultant for six months in 2009 in the policy-making section of the UK civil service. His team advised the highest levels of government on policies in the highly politicized areas of social policy and criminal justice.[1]Therefore, the author observed and participated in the policy-making process with minimal reactivity, that is, as close as possible to the normal process. Thus, by participating in the use of evidence for policy purposes, discussing and observing the process in his daily work, the author gathered data to develop and test the theory.
- Policy/Program Details
During the author's research, he points out that the lack of awareness of academic results can be partially explained by the "inadequacies" of social science research for use in evidence (Gans, 1971). The questions that policymakers tend to ask include: what should be done in practice; how will it work; what will the effects be; how much will it cost; will there be adverse consequences and on whom will they fall? There is very little evidence available that conclusively answers such questions for policymakers (Tilley and Laycock, 2000).
An important point concerns the narrative effort involved in creating new policies, as Hajer (1995) emphasizes regarding the importance of "telling stories" to influence which proposals will be adopted.
- Method
Following an “adaptive coding” approach[2] (Layder, 1998), the author generated a list of provisional codes from his previous work in this area (Stevens, 2007) and from existing literature. When coding field notes and interview transcripts, observations and quotations related to these provisional codes were highlighted, and new codes were generated as other concepts emerged from the data.
From this, eight key themes emerged:
- Commitment to the use of evidence;
- The oversaturation of evidence in politics;
- Intergovernmental relations;
- Controlling uncertainty;
- Bureaucratic competence and career in the civil service;
- The third face of bureaucratic reason: fitting history into place;
- O silent silence of inequality;
- Totemic hardness[3].
- Main results
This section will discuss the data found by the author for each of the key themes:
- Commitment to the use of evidence.
It was observed that public officials are not very different from academics in the sense of demonstrating competence in the use of scientific reasoning to gain reputations that lead to personal and professional reward (Bourdieu, 2000). The public officials with whom the author had contact proved to be highly committed to the use of evidence. Therefore, evidence was present in the development, discussion, and presentation of the policies that were observed.
- The oversaturation of evidence in politics
Fifteen types of evidence were found that entered into political debates, which, in addition to internally collected government data and externally produced academic analyses, included opinion polls and reports of... thinktanks and management consulting, policy documents, etc. As discussed earlier, policymakers must choose from the limited evidence available; that is, evidence becomes an oversaturated solution to policy problems.
- Intergovernmental relations
To gain acceptance, policy proposals must be approved by a wide range of senior civil servants, special advisors, and eventually, departmental ministers. The author notes that narrative, which was used as an effort to get the proposal approved, was a common thread in the creation of new policies, corroborating what Hajer (1995) stated.
- Controlling uncertainty
Controlling uncertainty strengthens the narrative of a policy document, but it also plays a broader role in structuring the context in which public officials operate.
- Bureaucratic competence and career in the civil service.
If public servants become useful in the task of creating and implementing policies, they will be more likely to achieve their own career advancement goals, thus maximizing both types of utility: being useful and pursuing personal goals. Therefore, the author emphasizes that the pressures and incentives that public servants experience in their career development are important for understanding how they come to use evidence in policymaking.
- The third face of bureaucratic reason: fitting history together.
Civil servants must present proposals that are useful to their superiors and that can be accepted within government policy; therefore, the proposals must fit into the existing narrative of government policy. The civil servants observed during the research, in order to achieve higher status, rather than challenge it, reinforced the fundamental assumptions of current political narratives.
- O silent silence of inequality
It is suggested that public officials learn to avoid uncertainty, complexity, and contradiction during policy formulation. The causal and detrimental impact of inequality is a line of thought that has influenced policy agendas. However, during his analysis, the author realized that programs that could "cover up" the effects of inequality were being sought, rather than addressing the root causes.
- Totemic hardness
This applies only to visible social groups, in which the poor and excluded have so consistently been "others" in contemporary criminal policy (Young, 2007).
- Lessons in Public Policy
The analysis so far suggests that there is an excess of evidence, mostly inconclusive, and an aversion to uncertainty, complexity, and contradiction in policymaking circles. The author concludes, therefore, that evidence-based policymaking is an intensely ideological activity, as it reinforces the unequal distribution of power.
Reference
STEVENS, A. (2011). Telling Policy Stories: An Ethnographic Study of the Use of Evidence in Policy-making in the UK. Journal of Social Policy, 40(2), 237-255. doi:10.1017/S0047279410000723
[1] During his work as a policy consultant, the author conducted documentary research, developed policy proposals, and participated in interdepartmental meetings, seminars, etc. In addition to observing interactions between colleagues, public officials, and advisors, he conducted interviews with 5 public servants. Not all contacts obtained informed consent, as open-ended research can influence participant behavior due to power dynamics.
[2] Adaptive coding.
[3] Totemic toughness
