Can securitization theory be used in normative analysis? Towards a just securitization theory

While securitization studies have paid considerable attention to the moral value of desecuritization, they have paid almost no attention to the morality of securitization. In this article, I attempt to rectify that situation by proposing a revision of securitization theory that specifies three criteria that – if fulfilled at the same time – would render a securitization morally right. The criteria are: (1) that there is an objective existential threat; (2) that the referent object of security is morally legitimate; and (3) that the security response is appropriate to the threat in question. Although what is suggested here is considerably removed from the Copenhagen School’s original securitization theory, it is akin to that framework insofar as it retains the functional distinction between the security analyst and the securitizing actor. Indeed, the development of criteria that determine the moral rightness of securitization is analogous to the Copenhagen School’s devising criteria that determine both the existence and the success of securitization

Windows of Opportunity: When and How Can the Policy Analyst Influence the Policymaker During the Policy Process

Building on a variety of conceptualizations about the policymaker, the policy analyst, and the policy process, this essay seeks to understand how these three aspects mesh together. Consequently, this paper attempts to examine four questions that are germane to the analysis of policy: What roles can the policy analyst play? What are the personality types of policymakers? What is the role of the policymaker's personality in the policy process? What are the windows of opportunity for the policy analyst in one's attempt to influence the policymaker during the policy process? This paper argues that the policy analyst has the opportunity to influence policymakers at various stages of the policy process. However, the influence strategies that are effective are different depending upon the type of policymaker. This understanding is vital if a policy analyst desires to have an impact. Furthermore, the role the analyst performs has a significant impact on the how and the extent to which the analyst may have leverage. Copyright 1995 by The Policy Studies Organization.