04 Jan Discussion: Presenting Policy Proposals

                                              SOCIAL WORK 

              SOCW – 6361 Social Policy: Analysis and Advocacy

Discussion: Presenting Policy Proposals

Policy practitioners should know that being forewarned is being forearmed. You should know how to diagnose an audience, develop a persuasive strategy, have a “tactics tool bag” for dealing with difficult or expert audiences, and know how to develop non-confrontational communication methods with audiences when necessary. In short, you need to know how to skillfully defend the creative policy proposal you are about to present and how to talk to policy makers who may not be interested in the issues you are presenting.

In this Discussion, you explore and analyze strategies and ideas for presenting policy proposals.

To Prepare: Think about strategies you can use to persuade others who might not share the same concerns about your issues or your policy proposals. Think about how you might defend your position on an issue or a policy and get them to agree with your perspective. Review Chapter 9 of your text, paying special attention to the section entitled “Combative Persuasion in Step 5 and Step 6” from pages 286-292.

 

By Day 5 (Note!!! PLEASE WRITE OUT EACH QUESTION BEFORE PROVIDING A RESPONSE. “Please I need an excellent paper”

Post 

Respond to your colleagues’ responses (see below) ½ page each by offering alternative strategies for presenting policy proposals to one or more colleagues.

 

 

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Required Readings 

 

Learning Resources

 

SOCW 6361 Webliography

These websites will be required throughout the semester. Become familiar with these websites, especially when doing research for your assignments.

 

Jansson, B. S. (2018). Becoming an effective policy advocate: From policy practice to social justice (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning Series.

• Chapter 9, “Presenting and Defending Policy Proposals in Step 5 and Step 6 of Policy Analysis” (pp. 284-326)

 

Jackson-Elmoore, C. (2005). Informing state policymakers: Opportunities for social workers. Social Work, 50(3), 251–261.

 

Optional Resources

 

MSW home page

Use this link to access the MSW home page, which provides resources for your social work program.

 

 

 

Delbrina Robinson 

RE: Discussion – Week 7

COLLAPSE

Public policy advocacy means persuading someone with decision-making power to take a course of action that you support. There are different policy persuasion techniques to approach policymakers, adversarial, coercive, hardball, and win-win (Jansson, 2018). Policy advocates will often discuss vulnerable populations’ needs with policymakers who may not appear to have concern for vulnerable populations. Influencing public policy change can be difficult. To communicate effectively with policymakers, a policy advocate needs to have their facts together, provide evidence-based research, have clear what the action should be and how the change will be a win-win situation. It is crucial to be positive when engaging while recognizing that the limits to evidence-based action and cognitive biases we ascribe to policymakers are present in ourselves, our groups, and the people we often describe as experts (Perez, 2015).  

It is vital to invest in relationships, gathering intelligence, developing a straightforward and unified solution. Policy advocates who approach their state legislator to express concerns on a specific policy issue should be aware of constituents’ ability to provide information to legislators. Legislators are more likely to use information from their constituents than members of the general public (Jackson-Elmoore, 2005).  

Investing in relationships, advocates can: develop trust and increase credibility with stakeholders, which may lead to coalitions or alliances; identify prospective policy champions; gather intelligence on policy opportunities and risks plus the values and beliefs of decision- makers and key influencers; and gain an understanding of the arguments of opponents (Cullerton, Donnet, Lee & Gallegos, 2018).  

References:  

Cullerton, K., Donnet, T., Lee, A., & Gallegos, D. (2018), Effective advocacy strategies for influencing government nutrition policy: a conceptual model, Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 15(83) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-018-0716-y  

Jackson-Elmoore, C. (2005), Informing state policymakers: Opportunities for social workers. Social work, 50(3), 251-261. 

 

Jansson, B.S. (2018). Becoming an effective policy advocate: From policy practice to social justice (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning Series  

 

Perez, O., (2104), Can Experts Be Trusted and What Can Be Done About It? Insights from the Biases Heuristic Literature, 1:1-32. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm? abstract_id=2490407  

 

 

 

Tyler Johnson

RE: Discussion – Week 7

COLLAPSE

 

 

Persuading policymakers can be difficult; therefore, different tactics may need to be used for various proposals.  Policy advocates might communicate the needs of vulnerable populations to policymakers by making them aware of the seriousness through expressing significant points.  Supporters could convince with the utilization of opposing viewpoints through discussions or hardball arrangements, alongside win-win alternatives (Jansson, 2018).  Jansson (2018) stated that friendly communications could assist with persuading policymakers; however, adversarial communication is sometimes required.  Advocates can utilize confrontational techniques to alter the opinions and actions of individuals who go against them (Jansson, 2018).  Arguments that can be used in advocacy include a counter proposition, attack the unacceptable trade-offs, attack the implicit or explicit values in the plan, and attack the proposition’s practicality (Jansson, 2018).  Communicating through coercive messages is viable when attempting to convince decision-makers because they acknowledge the benefits of the contentions of supporters who confront them or because they fear political or other costs to themselves if the confrontation is not immediately settled (Jansson, 2018).  Communicating through selecting a medium, such as a PowerPoint, can assist with persuading policymakers (Jansson, 2018).  Graphic materials can be used to promote sympathy or interest (Jansson, 2018).

References:

Jansson, B. S. (2018). Becoming an Effective Policy Advocate: From Policy Practice to Social Justice (8 ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning Series.