Analysis and action: The political will and public will approach
Our article, “Analysis and action: The political will and public will approach”, serves as a guide for facilitators supporting initiatives aiming to generate social policy. Without political will and public will for change, initiatives are unlikely to have the desired impact. The PPW approach integrates thinking about political will and public will in a way that recognizes the importance of both to social change efforts aimed at affecting policy change. Building on previous definitions of political will and public will, we provide facilitators looking to affect policy with a flexible framework based on the strong foundations of research, practice, and theory from a variety of disciplines for application across multiple contexts. Four key tasks consistent with those conceptual definitions are instrumental in building political will and public will for targeted policy or other social change in a way that produces mutual accountability. The four tasks are:
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Task 1: Identify key political and public stakeholders in the issue area;
Task 2: Determine existing problem and solution understandings;
Task 3: Facilitate alignment of problem and solution understandings, as necessary; and
Task 4: Build firm commitments and mutual accountability.
The PPW approach for analysis and action guides facilitators through these tasks in order to assess and help build, as needed, political will and public will. Our hope is that Action Research readers will try the approach while working to address complex problems through policy.
We invite you to learn more about this experience by reading our article HERE. Free 30-day access is available for this article beginning May 2018.
After you’ve had a chance to read this piece, please share your thoughts, ideas, or experiences with our community in the comments below so we can continue this discussion!
Columbia Embury
www.wright.edu
www.wright.edu
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