Rezension: Hassel, Anke & Wegrich, Kai (2022): How to Do Public Policy

In dieser Rezension wird "How to Do Public Policy" von Anke Hassel und Kai Wegrich als ein originelles und hervorragend geeignetes Lehrbuch für Studierende und (angehende) Führungskräfte der öffentlichen Verwaltung, des Public Managements und der Policy-Analyse vorgestellt. Das Buch unterscheidet sich von vergleichbaren Texten dadurch, dass es Politikgestaltung zuvorderst als strategische, politische Tätigkeit betrachtet sowie handlungsorientierte Einsichten betont anstelle der üblichen "Modelle des Politikprozesses" aus der Vogelperspektive. Das Buch beruht auf einem soliden Verständnis des aktuellen Forschungsstands der Policy-Analyse, meidet jedoch Klischees. Es vermittelt seinen Leserinnen und Lesern in gelungener Weise das nötige Rüstzeug, um die praktischen Herausforderungen der Politikgestaltung im 21. Jahrhundert in ihren institutionellen und politischen Dynamiken zu erkennen und zu gestalten

Great Policy Successes

"With so much media and political criticism of their shortcomings and failures, it is easy to overlook the fact that many governments work pretty well much of the time. Great Policy Successes turns the spotlight on instances of public policy that are remarkably successful. It develops a framework for identifying and assessing policy successes, paying attention not just to their programmatic outcomes but also to the quality of the processes by which policies are designed and delivered, the level of support and legitimacy they attain, and the extent to which successful performance endures over time. The bulk of the book is then devoted to 15 detailed case studies of striking policy successes from around the world, including Singapore's public health system, Copenhagen and Melbourne's rise from stilted backwaters to the highly liveable and dynamic urban centres they are today, Brazil's Bolsa Familia poverty relief scheme, the US's GI Bill, and Germany's breakthrough labour market reforms of the 2000s. Each case is set in context, its main actors are introduced, key events and decisions are described, the assessment framework is applied to gauge the nature and level of its success, key contributing factors to success are identified, and potential lessons and future challenges are identified. Purposefully avoiding the kind of heavy theorizing that characterizes many accounts of public policy processes, each case is written in an accessible and narrative style ideally suited for classroom use in conjunction with mainstream textbooks on public policy design, implementation, and evaluation

The BBC: Guardian of Public Understanding

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a long-standing institution with a worldwide reputation as the maker and supplier of trustworthy news embedded in programmes aimed at serving the public not commoditising it. This chapter describes the BBC’s institutional DNA and explains how its birth characteristics informed its institutional trajectory over the decades. The chapter discusses the internal principles and the particular ‘craft’ that has made this a true British institution that has become equally revered outside Britain’s borders. It analyses how the BBC survived institutional crises to reach a moment in history where the very idea underlying this venerable but agile institution has come under fire

Framing the Global Economic downturn

The global economic downturn that followed the collapse of major US financial institutions is no doubt the most significant crisis of our times. Its effects on corporate and governmental balance sheets have been devastating, as have been its impacts on the employment and well being of tens of millions of citizens. It continues to pose major challenges to national policymakers and institutions around the world. Managing public uncertainty and anxiety is vital in coping with financial crises. This requires not just prompt action but, most of all, persuasive communication by government leaders. At the same time, the very occurrence of such crises raises acute questions about the effectiveness and robustness of current government policies and institutions. With the stakes being so high, defining and interpreting what is going on, how and why it happened, and what ought to be done now become key questions in the political and policy struggles that crises invariably unleash. In this volume, we study how heads of government, finance ministers and national bank governors in eight countries as well as the EU engage in such ‘framing contests’, and how their attempts to interpret the cascading events of the economic downturn were publicly received. Using systematic content analysis of speeches and media coverage, this volume offers a unique comparative assessment of public leadership in times of crisis

Governing the Pandemic

This open access book offers unique insights into how governments and governing systems, particularly in advanced economies, have responded to the immense challenges of managing the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing disease COVID-19. Written by three eminent scholars in the field of the politics and policy of crisis management, it offers a unique ‘bird’s eye’ view of the immense logistical and political challenges of addressing a worst-case scenario that would prove the ultimate stress test for societies, governments, governing institutions and political leaders. It examines how governments and governing systems have (i) made sense of emerging transboundary threats that have spilled across health, economic, political and social systems (ii) mobilised systems of governance and often fearful and sceptical citizens (iii) crafted narratives amid high uncertainty about the virus and its impact and (iv) are working towards closure and a return to ‘normal’ when things can never quite be the same again. The book also offers the building blocks of pathways to future resilience. Succeeding and failing in all these realms is tied in with governance structures, experts, trust, leadership capabilities and political ideologies. The book appeals to anyone seeking to understand ‘what’s going on?’, but particularly academics and students across multiple disciplines, journalists, public officials, politicians, non-governmental organisations and citizen groups

Teaching Crisis Management Before and After the Pandemic: Personal Reflections

This reflective contribution tells the story of a veteran public sector crisis management (CM) researcher’s 35-year journey with educating students and CM practitioners, It offers preliminary insights about how the pandemic experience might – and should – induce a significant rethink of how educators conceptualize the nature of crises and the challenges governments and public agencies face in coping with them

Governing the Pandemic

This open access book offers unique insights into how governments and governing systems, particularly in advanced economies, have responded to the immense challenges of managing the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing disease COVID-19. Written by three eminent scholars in the field of the politics and policy of crisis management, it offers a unique ‘bird’s eye’ view of the immense logistical and political challenges of addressing a worst-case scenario that would prove the ultimate stress test for societies, governments, governing institutions and political leaders. It examines how governments and governing systems have (i) made sense of emerging transboundary threats that have spilled across health, economic, political and social systems (ii) mobilised systems of governance and often fearful and sceptical citizens (iii) crafted narratives amid high uncertainty about the virus and its impact and (iv) are working towards closure and a return to ‘normal’ when things can never quite be the same again. The book also offers the building blocks of pathways to future resilience. Succeeding and failing in all these realms is tied in with governance structures, experts, trust, leadership capabilities and political ideologies. The book appeals to anyone seeking to understand ‘what’s going on?’, but particularly academics and students across multiple disciplines, journalists, public officials, politicians, non-governmental organisations and citizen groups

Химиотерапия взрослых больных с саркомами мягких тканей

В обзоре рассмотрены общие принципы цитостатического лечения взрослых больных с саркомами мягких тканей. Роль химиотерапии при этом заболевании на протяжении последних лет повышается. Hаиболее эффективными цитостатиками являются доксорубицин и ифосфамид, причем у обоих препаратов установлена зависимость эффективности от дозы. Химиотерапию применяют как элемент радикального комбинированного лечения, а также как паллиативный метод при метастатическом процессе. При рабдомиосаркоме химиотерапия эффективна практически при любой стадии заболевания.Chemotherapy has an increasing role in the therapy of soft tissue sarcomas. Meanwhile, chemotherapy of these tumors is frequently considered in general without taking into account the peculiar clinical features of various subtypes. Doxorubicin and ifosfamide are the most active drugs in the treatment of soft tissue sarcomas. Chemotherapy could be used both for radical and for palliative treatment. For rhabdomyosarcoma, chemotherapy is effective in all the stages of such disease

The New Eurocrats

Policies in the EU are largely made by national civil servants who prepare and implement decisions in Brussels as well as at home. Despite their important role, these national civil servants form a relatively hidden world that has received little attention from both the media and academics. This volume considers a wide variety of sources and research methods to answer such questions as: how many civil servants are actually involved in EU-related activities? What do these civil servants do when they engage with the EU? And how do they negotiate their dual roles? The New Eurocrats offers unique and invaluable insights into these civil servants and their working practices-and uncovers some secrets in the world of EU governance along the way