Deck 13: Politics, Analysis, and Policy Choice

Question 1

A relatively new form of citizen participation, ______, allows citizens to access government agencies and their policies through various Web sites.

A) policy engagement
B) WWW government
C) e-government
D) authority analysis

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The ______ has led to more evaluations of public policies and programs, an important way to improve policy capacity.

A) Administrative Procedure Act
B) Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act
C) No Child Left Behind Act
D) Government Performance and Results Act of 1993

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The 2016 election produced a close victory in ______ in the presidential race.

A) Wisconsin
B) California
C) Oregon
D) Washington

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Clinton won the popular vote by a margin of over ______ million votes.

A) 1.3
B) 2.5
C) 3.1
D) 4.7

Question 5

The public can get involved in the policy-making process by ______.

A) joining an interest group
B) contacting their elected officials
C) staying informed
D) All of these

Question 6

______ issues can deal with a range of concerns, from protecting individual freedoms to how the cost and benefits of a program are distributed across the population.

A) Equity
B) Effectiveness
C) Efficiency
D) Administrative feasibility

Question 7

A policy-making approach (commonly used by the federal government) defined as a series of small policy actions that lead to modest and relatively slow policymaking.

A) strategic policy making
B) rational-economic policy making
C) incremental policy making
D) innovative policy making

Question 8

______ often take a position on a policy issue and try to influence policy makers to take their position through release of reports, personal persuasion, testifying, lobbying, advertising, and the like.

A) States
B) Legislative committees
C) Policy elites
D) Interest groups

Question 9

What criterion is most likely to receive increased attention in contemporary policy making as policy alternatives and existing programs are assessed?

A) effectiveness
B) efficiency
C) equity
D) liberty

Question 10

To get their news, many people rely on entertaining news outlets or one-sided broadcasts that reflect their own views.To get the best understanding of the real issues or proposals being made by government, one should ______.

A) read the news on the home page of your Internet browser
B) rely on the opinions of your friends
C) find an interesting, reliable, objective source you like, and will check regularly
D) recognize and accept the fact that just one individual cannot have an impact on public policy

Question 11

______ is often difficult to evaluate because this criterion relies on assumptions and projections of the future that may or may not come to pass.

A) Equity
B) Efficiency
C) Effectiveness
D) Political feasibility

Question 12

______ refers to the ability of a government to address its problems effectively through public policy.

A) Policy analysis
B) Policy capacity
C) Incremental policy development
D) Decentralization

Question 13

Which states were identified as having tried to make registration and voting easier?

A) Oregon
B) California
C) Vermont
D) All of these

Question 14

The dominant policy-making style in the United States is ______.

A) rational analysis
B) incremental
C) rational choice
D) pluralism

Question 15

What is the typical result of compromise on policy alternatives?

A) policies that are only partially effective and have continued debate
B) greater public involvement
C) political parties working with greater harmony
D) reduced equity of policy decisions

Question 16

According to Chapter 13, the conflict and polarization that typify American government today often leads to ______.

A) incremental decision making
B) revolutionary change
C) new presidential administrations
D) elite policymaking

Question 17

______ allows policy makers to evaluate the situation while taking incremental policy steps.

A) Decision analysis
B) Rational analysis
C) Policy evaluation
D) Adaptive management

Question 18

The presidential election of ______ clearly showed, modern Internet technologies facilitate a much greater level of citizen involvement even in national elections and governing.

A) 2004
B) 2008
C) 2012
D) 2016

Question 19

This group of American citizens is the least likely to vote.

A) wealthy individuals
B) college students
C) senior citizens
D) highly educated individuals

Question 20

Policy analysis is used most heavily during which stages of the policy-making process?

A) problem analysis and policy alternative development
B) problem analysis and capacity development
C) capacity development and legitimation
D) evaluation and regulation development

Question 21

The Affordable Care Act provided insurance to ______ million that previously lacked it.

A) 10
B) 20
C) 30
D) 40

Question 22

In Wisconsin, the way the state has balanced its budget led to large protests.Certain interest groups claimed that they have borne an unfair amount of the financial burden.These citizens are claiming the budget lacks ______, one of the criteria used to evaluate policies.

A) effectiveness
B) efficiency
C) equity
D) administrative feasibility

Question 23

About ______ states chose to require a photo ID for voting.

A) 15
B) 20
C) 25
D) 30

Question 24

A state that is able to develop effective policies that meet the needs of its citizens could be said to have strong ______.

Question 25

The Food Safety Modernization Act was passed in ______.

A) 2008
B) 2010
C) 2012
D) 2014

Question 26

With regard to policies that address access to quality public education (at K-12 and higher levels), which of the following evaluative criterion is most important?

A) effectiveness
B) political feasibility
C) equity
D) capacity

Question 27

Measuring whether the Economic Stimulus of 2009 has sparked creation of jobs and economic growth is an example of using which evaluative criterion?

A) effectiveness
B) equity
C) administrative feasibility
D) liberty

Question 28

Voter turnout in ______ was the highest in decades.

A) 2000
B) 2004
C) 2008
D) 2012

Question 29

Efficiency is probably the criterion most likely to receive attention in contemporary policy making.

A) equity
B) efficiency
C) effectiveness
D) none of these

Question 30

As budget pressures and scarce funding become dominant issues at all levels of government, use of which evaluative criterion has increased?

A) efficiency
B) equity
C) effectiveness
D) political feasibility

Question 31

Which statement best describes the relationship of policy analysis to the policy process model?

A) The two activities are essentially separate and independent.
B) Completion of the policy process model occurs first, and then policy analysis begins.
C) Policy analysis supports the policy process at several points by increasing understanding of problems and possible solutions.
D) While only the government completes all steps of the policy process model, many other interest groups are involved in policy analysis.

Question 32

The Dodd-Frank Act passed in:

A) 2008
B) 2009
C) 2010
D) 2011

Question 33

The Government Performance and Results Act was passed in:

A) 1990
B) 1991
C) 1993
D) 1995

Question 34

The world's population is expected to climb to some 9.8 billion by ______.

A)2020
B) 2030
C) 2040
D) 2050

Question 35

______ refers to the competence, skill, and participation of the individuals members of a democracy.

Question 36

A 2012 Pew Research Center report found that ______% of registered voters in the nation agreed that citizens who are voting should be required to show a photo ID.

A) 40
B) 59
C) 77
D) 81

Question 37

Which of the following evaluative criteria are emphasized in all of the following policy debates: income gap, urban K-12 education, cost of higher education, taxation of wealthy, Social Security benefits, access to health care, and climate change?

A) efficiency
B) feasibility
C) equity
D) effectiveness

Question 38

A 2016 Gallup poll found that ______% of Americans favor a photo ID requirement.

A) 70
B) 80
C) 50
D) 40

Question 39

Evaluative criteria are ______.

A) the policy alternatives available to policy actors
B) those that measure the policy actors involved in a policy issue
C) the important aspects of the policy proposal on which you will make comparisons
D) arbitrary standards that are the same for all policy issues

Question 40

A systematic and organized way to study problems, policy alternatives, or the effectiveness of government programs is called ______.

A) policy formulation
B) policy legitimation
C) policy analysis
D) policy capacity

Question 41

The ______ of 2010 was the first major overhaul of food safety since 1938.

Question 42

In recent times, due to economic and fiscal concerns, the evaluative criterion of ______ is most often emphasized because it considers effectiveness as well as cost.

Question 43

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed in ______.

Question 44

Clinton lost the ______ vote but won the ______ vote.

Question 45

______ issues and personal freedom are addressed less frequently.

Question 46

In the last 3 months of the 2016 presidential campaign, ______ stories posted on Facebook led to more reader engagement.

Question 47

All states must meet the minimum requirements that were set by the federal ______.

Question 48

______, a technique of gathering information about problems and studying proposals, can bring greater clarity to public policymaking.

Question 49

The use of ______ is enabling governments to reach out to and engage citizens to a greater extent than ever before.

Question 50

______ policy making is the dominant style in the U.S.political system.

Question 51

______ reflect who participates in the process, who does not, and the different resources that each policy actor brings to the decision-making arena.

Question 52

At periodic stages of the policy process, ______ is the criterion analysts use to determine how well a policy has lived up to expectations.

Question 53

Opportunities for citizen involvement in government are greatest at the ______ level.

Question 54

The history of ______ in areas as diverse as energy policy, economic stimulus measures, health-care reform, and taxes and spending reflects the inability of policy makers to resolve some of these deep conflict.

Question 55

______ in the House voted more than 60 times to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Question 56

______ cases demonstrate the dynamics of the policy-making process.

Question 57

______ arises when policy actors have differing views about the substance of public policies or whether government intervention is justifiable at all.

Question 58

Political conflict is endemic to ______.

Question 59

Wisconsin ______ required that residents present an acceptable photo identification card in order to vote in state and federal elections.

Question 60

Why might incremental decision-making be the most suitable way to make policy in the United States?

Question 61

How can citizen participation improve policy capacity?

Question 62

Discuss some ways the public can be involved in any stage of the policy-making process, including new and emerging ways.How might your input improve the process?

Question 63

Select a recent public policy alternative and, to the best of your ability, evaluate it using the criteria of effectiveness, efficiency, and equity.What kind of information might you need? What problems may arise in trying to conduct your evaluation?

Question 64

In what ways might technology make public involvement in government easier? Develop at least three ways that governments and individuals are utilizing technology to involve citizens in government.

Question 65

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the U.S.federal government's incremental policy-making approach.

Question 66

How does the amount of trust in government and its leaders affect citizen participation in the policy process?