Course title: PUBLIC POLICY for doctoral students

Course number: JSD009, Fall Term 2023/2024

Course leader: Prof. Dr. Martin Potůček

Office hours: https://konzultace.fsv.cuni.cz

The volume of instruction: 2

Lectures will be delivered in the room C122, U Kříže 8, Prague 5- Jinonice,

Course materials are available on Moodle https://dl1.cuni.cz/course/view.php?id=5646.

Goals of instruction:

The course aims to introduce students to the study of public policy as a discipline, within a broader context of the development of contemporary societies; to exemplify public policy’s practical application and the ways public policy as a scientific discipline attempts to apprehend social problems and devise solutions thereof; to do so by defining the key terms, theories, and approaches of public policy; and to engage students in critical thinking and studying, systematic work with scholarly literature, and writing scholarly texts.

Registration prerequisites:

This course is offered exclusively to students of the doctoral programs of Veřejná a sociální politika and Public and Social Policy; with the permission of the course leader, students of other Ph.D. programs may register as well.

Table 1. Lectures: Mondays, 15:30-18:20 pm.

Day

Content

2 Oct

Lecture #1

Introduction to the course.

A1 Public interests and public policy.

A2 Values in Public Policy. Historical Institutionalism.

16 Oct

Lecture #2

A3 Governance. Corporatist Intermediation. Policy networks.

A4 Actors and Institutions. Actor-Centered Institutionalism.

30 Oct

Lecture #3

A5 Public policy instruments. Discursive Institutionalism. Advocacy Coalition Framework.

A6 Public Policy Process. The Stage of Problem Delimitation and Problem Recognition. Agenda Setting.

13 Nov

Lecture #4

15:30 – 16:50 Handwritten assignment: Critical reflection on the topics of the first three lectures. Answers in Czech, Slovak, or English.

17:00 – 18:20 A7 Policy Formulation and Decisionmaking. Veto Players. Multiple Streams Framework.

27 Nov

Lecture #5

A8 Policy Implementation. Theories of Bureaucracy. Principal-Agent Model.

A9 Policy Evaluation. Rational (Public) Choice Theory.

11 Dec

Lecture #6

A10 How to Understand Public Policy

Final recapitulation, getting ready for the written examination.

Conditions for passing:

Students will have to pass the written Critical Reflection on the topics of the first three lectures, and the written examination at the end of the term.

Table 2: The evaluation of students´ Critical reflection on the topics of the first three lectures on November 13th

The nature of the answer

Charakteristika odpovědi

Points

Body

The topic was very well understood.

The theoretical framework and empirical evidence were applied properly. Relevant reference to at least four scientific sources in addition to the course’s textbook.

Value-added: inventions, unusual but relevant perspective, an appropriate case that fits to illustrate the given problematics.

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Výborné porozumění problematice.

Správné uplatnění teoretického rámce a empirické evidence. Relevantní reference minimálně na čtyři další odborné prameny kromě učebnice.

Přidané hodnoty: Ocenění hodná invence, nevšední, ale relevantní pohled, nabídka případu vhodně ilustrujícího danou problematiku.

Pass

The topic was taken right away.

The theoretical framework and empirical evidence were applied properly. Relevant reference to at least three scientific sources in addition to the course textbook.

Value-added: a relevant broader perspective, an appropriate case that might illustrate the given problematics.

---

Dobré porozumění problematice.

Uspokojivé uplatnění teoretického rámce a empirické evidence. Relevantní reference minimálně na tři další odborné prameny kromě učebnice.

Přidané hodnoty: relevantní širší pohled, nabídka případu, který může ilustrovat danou problematiku.

Pass

Reflection corresponds with the topic, but it is more or less descriptive and does not provide a satisfactory explanation of a given topic.

Relevant reference to at least two scientific sources in addition to the course’s textbook.

---

Reflexe souvisí s problematikou, ale je spíše popisná a nepodává její uspokojivé vysvětlení.

Relevantní reference minimálně na dva další odborné prameny kromě učebnice.

Fail

The reflection only very loosely corresponds with the topic, and its explanatory power is minimal.

Relevant reference to a scientific source in addition to the course textbook.

---

Reflexe souvisí s problematikou jen velmi volně a její vypovídací síla je minimální.

Relevantní reference na jeden další odborný pramen kromě učebnice.

Fail

Reflection does not correspond with the topic.

Failed reasoning, with logical failure or uncritical application of ideological cliché.

The ‘common sense’ answer without the attempt to scientific analysis and reference to the literature outside of the course´s textbook.

Response delivered after the deadline, shorter, or longer than required.

---

Otázce nebylo porozuměno, odpověď se s ní míjí.

Argumentace závadná – s logickými chybami nebo nekriticky přejímající ideologická klišé.

Odpověď zůstává v rovině „common sense“, bez uplatnění odborného pohledu a reference na literaturu.

Odpověď byla dodána po termínu, případně kratší nebo delší než požadováno.

Fail

Note: Consider looking at chapters B2, B3, and B4 of the Public Policy textbook for inspiration on how to apply public policy theories.

The results of the final examination will be the final proof of students´ continuous study of the recommended literature and engagement in lectures. It will be in the format of several thematic issues to be answered in writing in the classroom, without access to the Internet or any electronic device. Duration three hours.

Evaluation of the final written examination:

Written examination	Fail	Pass
Point score	Up to 35	36-50

Anti-plagiarism and citing rules

Plagiarism refers to cases where students are not properly citing sources in an assignment, but copying other authors' work, ideas, materials, or data, and passing them off as their own. This also pertains to copying parts of earlier work without properly acknowledging it.

Charles University treats instances of plagiarism very seriously. Any form of plagiarism is unacceptable and will be dealt with using official procedures. Therefore, students are advised to take special precautions and make sure that they cite all the sources they are using in their assignments properly.

Sources shall be consistently credited in line with the latest version of the ISO 690 standard or another internationally accepted referencing standard (e.g. APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian, Harvard). For more information, please see the following guide on bibliographic citation of our faculty: