In the formulation of policies, many stakeholders often disagree on essential issues. Especially on issues that are sensitive, individuals often do not reach a consensus on how policies ought to be formulated. Matters that may affect everyone such as the tax system may, meet a certain degree of agreement. On the contrary, controversial issues such as drug use have met resistance among different quarters. The state of California, for example, has succeeded to implement a policy on the use of medical marijuana (Stich & Miller, 2016). Conversely, other states have failed to apply the same policy despite being in the same country.
Resistance to the implementation of the various policies is often staged by multiple interest groups such as non-governmental organizations and activists. Mark Thatcher posits that the relevant authorities have tried to be flexible and democratic in their approach so that every party is contented (Thatcher, 2014). Thatcher further says that to prevent conflict, the particular authority that intends to come up with policies usually reviews the policies to make sure that they are in tandem with the desired objectives. The interest groups are then given an opportunity to voice their concerns before the policies are implemented.
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Erik Hans’ article Analyzing and Managing Policy Processes in Complex Networks , provides a framework that can be used when developing policies. In Erik’s model, stakeholders are required to consider cognitive and psychological factors when developing policies (Klijn, 2012). It is essential that the public is made aware of the benefits of the changes before they are implemented. It is prudent that everyone participates in the process to avoid wrangles.
Conclusively, it is imperative that policies be made democratically. Over the recent years, the term policy networks have become popular. The networks consist of research that has been conducted by various scholars on ways of developing policy approaches that involve different parties so that conflicts are minimized.
References
Klijn, E. H. (2012). Analyzing and managing policy processes in complex networks: A theoretical examination of the concept policy network and its problems. Administration & Society , 28 (1), 90-119.
Stich, B., & Miller, C. R. (2016). Using the advocacy coalition framework to understand freight transportation policy change. Public Works Management & Policy , 13 (1), 62-74.
Thatcher, M. (2014). The development of policy network analyses: From modest origins to overarching frameworks. Journal of theoretical politics , 10 (4), 389-416.
