Theorizing the policy process

This chapter summarizes the voluminous literature on the goals of public policy and the tools for achieving them. Theoretical rationales for regulation including Normative Analysis as Positive Theory, Capture Theory, and Stigler’s Economic Theory of Regulation are discussed. While these theories provide reasons why regulation occurs, they do not explain how it does. To do so, we present a separate body of literature on theories of the policy process, including Lindblom’s disjointed incrementalism model, Kingdon’s multiple streams framework, interest group theories, the Advocacy Coalition Framework, Narrative Policy Analysis, the punctuated equilibrium models, and the theory of elite competition.