Policy Analysis as Problem Solving

Rachel Meltzer is Associate Professor of Urban Policy and Chair of the Public and Urban Policy master’s degree program at the New School. She regularly teaches Policy Analysis, advises student teams in the Urban Policy Lab, and runs a doctoral seminar on theories of the policy-making process. Her research is broadly concerned with urban economies and how market and policy forces can shape disparate outcomes for neighborhoods. She focuses on issues related to housing, land use, economic development, and local public finance. Alex Schwartz is Professor of Urban Policy at the New School, where he has taught Policy Analysis since 1993. He directs the New School’s Urban Policy Lab, in which teams of graduate students advise government agencies and nonprofit organizations on a wide array of policy and management issues. His research focuses primarily on housing and community development. He is the author of Housing Policy in the United States (3rd edition) (Routledge, 2014) and is the Managing Editor for North America for the international journal Housing Studies.

Introduction; Chapter 1: What is Policy Analysis? Mainstream and Alternative Perspectives; Chapter 2: Defining the Problem and Setting the Stage; Chapter 3: Devising Alternative Policy Options; Chapter 4: Objectives and Criteria; Chapter 5: Technical Aspects of Policy Analysis: Discounting, Cost-Benefit Analysis and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis; Chapter 6: Analysis and Making Recommendations; Chapter 7: Research and Policy Analysis; Chapter 8: Policy Analysis in Practice; Chapter 9: Epilogue