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Singapore Management University Graduate & Senior Undergraduate Design Syllabus
No full textSingapore Management University Graduate & Senior Undergraduate Design Syllabu
Systematically Pinching Ideas: A Comparative Approach to Policy Design
Full text linkPolicy design,, whether conceptualized as a verb referring to the process of formulating policy ideas,, or as a noun describing the logic through which policy intends to achieve its objectives,, remains relatively uncharted territory.. This paper reviews what we know about how policy designs emerge,, and identifies the kinds of biases and weaknesses that are introduced into designs by the decision heuristics employed.. Theories of policy invention and expert decision--mmaking suggest that individuals search through large amounts of relevant information stored in memory,, reason by analogies,, make comparisons,, and either copy or simulate patterns of information.. Policy scholars may contribute to improved policy design by making more explicit the biases introduced through reliance on decision heuristics,, and by suggesting a more formal,, self conscious search and selection process that enables designers to be more discriminating when they pinch policy ideas from other contexts.. To perform this task,, comparative policy analysis is needed in which common elements that exist in virtually all policies are identified and the underlying structural logic of the policies is made explicit.. In this paperwe set forth generic elements found in policies,, describe and compare some of the more common design patterns,, and discuss the circumstances where these may be inappropriately copied or borrowed,, thereby thwarting the effectiveness of the policy
How Solutions Chase Problems: Instrument Constituencies in the Policy Process
Full text linkPublic policies are composed of complex arrangements of policy goals and policy means matched through some decision-making process. Exactly how this process works and which comes first—problem or solution—is an outstanding research question in the policy sciences. This article argues the emerging concept of an “instrument constituency”—a subsystem component dedicated to the articulation and promotion of particular kinds of solutions regardless of problem context—can help policy scholars answer this critical question and better understand policymaking. At present, however, there is only limited empirical evidence of the existence, accuracy, and relevance of the instrument constituency concept. This article clarifies and refines the concept through cross-sectoral and cross-national case studies, demonstrating its utility in aiding our understanding of policy processes and their dynamics, including the issue of how prob- lems and solutions are proposed and matched in the course of policy adoption
Tools for integrating environmental objectives into policy and practice: What works where?
Full text linkAn abundance of approaches, strategies, and instruments – in short: tools – have been developed that intend to stimulate or facilitate the integration of a variety of environmental objectives into development planning, na- tional or regional sectoral policies, international agreements, business strategies, etc. These tools include legally mandatory procedures, such as Environmental Impact Assessment and Strategic Environmental Assessment; more voluntary tools such as environmental indicators developed by scientists and planning tools; green budgeting, etc. A relatively underexplored question is what integration tool fits what particular purposes and contexts, in short: “what works where?”. This paper intends to contribute to answering this question, by first pro- viding conceptual clarity about what integration entails, by suggesting and illustrating a classification of integra- tion tools, and finally by summarising some of the lessons learned about how and why integration tools are (not) used and with what outcomes, particularly in terms of promoting the integration of environmental objectives
The 2014 Scottish Referendum and the Nationalism-Social Policy Nexus
Full text linkDuring the campaign leading to the 2014 Scottish referendum on independence, social policy issues played a central role. This article explains the nature of Scottish nationalist mobilization and its relationship with social policy, from the drive for ‘home rule’ in the 1980s and early-mid 1990s to the 2014 referendum campaign. As shown, the idea that Scotland must become independent from the United Kingdom to protect its more progressive nation from social policy retrenchment originating from the central (British) government appeared long before the 2014 referendum campaign. In fact, the march towards devolution in the 1980s and early to mid-1990s had featured a similar argument about how political autonomy could enable Scots to make social policy better suited to their social democratic preferences. Through a comparison with the 1980 and 1995 Québec referendums on sovereignty, this article offers a comparative and historical perspective on the social policy debate surrounding the Scottish referendum while focusing primarily on health care and pensions
Persuasive Design: Fringes and Foundations
Full text linkTo understand what it means to design ‘persuasive technology’, one probably needs to understand it in relation to design in general. Using examples from a variety of areas of design discourse, the first part of the paper presents the idea that design is inherently persuasive. Following a discussion of what this might imply to the identification of ‘persuasive design’ as an emerging research area, the idea of objects as persuasive arguments in material form is presented. Suggesting that this notion could be used as basis for working with persuasion in design, the paper finally presents a practical example of how this might work in a design research project
The 2015 Provincial Election in Prince Edward Island
Full text linkPrince Edward Island's 65th General Election was held 4 May 2015. The Prince Edward Island Liberal Party (Liberals) won 18 of the Island's 27 seats, capturing its third straight majority. The Progressive Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island (PCs) improved its standing to eight seats, once again forming the Official Opposition. The Green Party of Prince Edward Island (Greens) picked up a single seat - its party leader winning that party's first ever in a PEI election. The New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island (NDP) did not win a seat, despite garnering slightly more votes island-wide than did the Greens. The surprise of the election may not have been the historic election of the leader of the Greens, but the fact that two candidates tied, resulting in a coin toss to determine the winner
Organizing Research and Development at the Intersection of Learning, Implementation, and Design
Full text linkThis paper describes elements of an approach to research and development called design-based implementation research. The approach represents a significant expansion of design research, which typically focuses on classrooms, to develop and test innovations that foster alignment and coordination of supports for improving teaching and learning in classrooms. As in policy research, policy and program implementation are key foci of theoretical development and analysis. What distinguishes the approach from both traditional design research and policy research is the presence of four key elements within a project: (1) a focus on persistent problems of practice from multiple stakeholders’ perspectives, (2) a commitment to iterative, collaborative design, (3) a concern with developing theory related to both classroom learning and implementation through systematic inquiry, and (4) a concern with developing capacity for sustaining change in systems.NOTE: A Full-Text Open Access version of the final version of this article is available at http://journals.sagepub.com/stoken/rbtfl/1TAxpRHapnMPs/full Penuel, William R., Barry J. Fishman, Britte Haugan Cheng, and Nora Sabelli. “Organizing Research and Development at the Intersection of Learning, Implementation, and Design.” Educational Researcher, October 1, 2011. doi:10.3102/0013189X11421826
Government effectiveness, regulatory compliance and public preference for marine policy instruments. An experimental approach
Full text linkDemocratic governance of natural resources requires democratic accountability. To explore the ante- cedence of public preference for marine policy instruments, this study revisit previous research findings linking inefficient political institutions to demand for more coercive policy tools. Thus, the aim of this study is to investigates the influence of 1) effectiveness of authorities and 2) regulatory compliance among resources users on the public preference for marine policy instruments. A 2 2 between-subject scenario experimental approach was utilised, where the effectiveness of authorities and regulatory compliance of shrimpers varied. Respondents were asked to rank three different marine policy instru- ment: 1) tougher penalties for noncompliance, 2) dialogue between authorities and resources users and, 3) tradable quotas. The results from the scenario experiment demonstrate that ineffective authorities increase the preference for tougher penalties. A potential explanation for this finding is that regulation implies less discretion, and hence regulation is preferred when public institutions are inefficient
Liberty, Equality, Laicity: Québec’s Charter of Values and the Reframing of Politics
Full text linkThe debate around Québec's proposed "Charter of Values" in 2013 and 2014 occupied the centre of the political, intellectual, and academic attention space. However, this proposed legislation was discussed across Canada on the basis of limited information in view of documents which were only available in French and of the specific historical and political context that remained unexplored. Once set in this context and in light of the manifestos that answered it, the Québec "Charter of Values" can be seen as an attempt to develop a renewed cultural nationalism in terms of criteria for adhesion and belonging to the Québecois nation. In appealing to values said to be held by Quebecers and establishing a distinction from those who do not share these values of democracy, equality between women and men, and laicity, the "Charter of Values" has the effect of providing a new framework for democratic politics and the exercise of rights and freedoms