ABSTRACT
It is extremely difficult to determine what the will of the people is, that is, how citizens would like to solve certain public problems. At the same time, the processes of public policy formation are rarely rational and follow a theoretical model. The contexts in which public policy is formed are changing. Not everything can be effectively planned. Decisions are made on the basis of factors that are difficult to explain to a wider audience – mainly of a political nature, often having nothing to do with substantive arguments. All this makes the processes of democratic public policymaking deviate from expectations, and politics and politicians lose credibility. This chapter considers what factors play the biggest role in the public policymaking process. What guides decision-makers in their actions? A broad concern for the common good, specific substantive arguments, or instrumental political considerations? In answering these questions, the chapter uses data from qualitative empirical research conducted among Polish local government decision-makers, including councilors, officials, and NGO activists. The chapter concludes with a claim about the urgent need for argumentative debate at the center of the public policy process.
