Beyond Machiavelli

The first edition of Beyond Machiavelli was an important and valuable book for those of us seeking to understand the role of analysis in the policy-making process. The second edition adds to that value by extending assessment to the contemporary period of increased globalization, sharpened political polarization, and ever more complex organizational environments. This book should be read by all policy analysts and the researchers who study them. -- David L. Weimer, Edwin E. Witte Professor of Political Economy, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Suitable for students, faculty, and practitioners, this title discusses the shifts in society's attitudes toward public action, the availability of resources to meet public needs, and the dimensions of policymaking. It looks at the possible dimensions of the policy analysis field and profession as it moves into the future.In this new edition of Beyond Machiavelli, Beryl Radin updates her popular overview of the field of policy analysis. Radin, winner of the John Gaus Award from the American Political Science Association, considers the critical issues that confront the policy analysis practitioner, changes in the field, including the globalization of policy analysis, and the dramatic changes in the policy environment. She examines schools and careers; the conflict between the imperatives of analysis and the world of politics; the analytic tools that have been used, created, or discarded over the past fifty years; the relationship between decision makers and analysts as the field has multiplied and spread; and the assumptions about the availability and appropriateness of information that can be used in the analytic task. Once found largely in the United States, policy analysis has become global, and Radin discusses the field's new paradigms, methodologies and concepts of success. This new edition considers changes in expertise, controversies in the field, today's career prospects, and the impact of 9/11 on the field. She profiles three additional policy analysis organizations and updates the profiles of the organizations in the first edition. Continuing the trajectory of the fictional characters from the first edition, Radin adds a character representing the new generation just entering the field. The book discusses the shifts in society's attitudes toward public action, the availability of resources to meet public needs, and the dimensions of policymaking. Written for students, faculty, and practitioners, the book concludes with a look at the possible dimensions of the policy analysis field and profession as it moves into the future.