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The notion of "policy sciences" may have different connotations. According to Harold Laswell (1971), “policy sciences are concerned with the knowledge of and in the decision processes of the public and civic order.”〔Laswell, H.D. (1971). A Preview of Policy Sciences. American Elsevier. Accessed through http://www.policysciences.org/classics/preview.pdf〕 Knowledge of decision processes points to the empirical and scientific understanding of the how policies are made and executed. Empirical knowledge pertains to those generated through scientific inquiry ad observation as applied to decision processes.〔http://www.policysciences.org/policysciences.php〕 The policy sciences provide an integrated and comprehensive approach for addressing issues and problems at all levels in ways that help to clarify and secure the common interest. Helping people make better decisions is the central objective of the policy sciences, and the fundamental goal is to foster a commonwealth of human dignity for all. Alexander G. Flor, Ph.D., one of the esteemed development communicators in the Philippines and also a full professor at the University of the Philippines Open University, points out that "policy scientists or policy analysts are involved not only in the scientific design, formulation, analysis and evaluation of policies. They are also concerned with the study of the policy making process itself." Flor advocates that "if indeed communication and information are to be efficiently and effectively utilized in the development process, then policies are needed to direct their use for the achievement of the highest social good." The term “policy sciences” is in plural form to emphasize its interdisciplinary nature.〔Allen (1978), cited in Flor, Alexander (1991). Development Communication and the Policy Sciences. Journal of Development Communication. Kuala Lumpur: Asian Institute of Development Communication.〕 It recognizes the multiplicity of factors affecting certain problems and multi-dimensions of certain phenomenon that is subject to decision processes.〔Flor, Alexander (1991). Development Communication and the Policy Sciences. Journal of Development Communication. Kuala Lumpur: Asian Institute of Development Communication.〕 As such, the emphasis of policy sciences is on applying scientific or empirical evidences in understanding problems so that more realistic, responsive and effective interventions are identified and implemented. Since a problem is multi-dimensional, various scientific disciplines are needed to form a comprehensive analysis of a certain phenomenon. Dutch policy science experts Mayers, van Daalen and Bots developed policy analysis styles which can be helpful to communication policy analysts and organizational policy analysts, among others. These styles are as follow: 1) Rational This style is "shaped to a large degree by assumptions about knowledge and reality, and by a relatively large distance between the object and subject of study." 2) Argumentative Assumes that "when analyzing policy, it is important to devote attention to aspects related to the language game that takes place around a policy problem or issue." 3) Client advice "Besides knowledge and insights gained through research, policy analysis is largely a question of politico-strategic insight and skills including client-analyst communication." 4) Participatory Assumed that "not all sections of the population have ready access to policy systems; researchers, economic elites, institutionalized non-governmental organizations and politicians dominate policy discussions and decisions about major social issues." 5) Process This is based on the assumption that "substantive aspects of a policy problem are, in fact, coordinate or perhaps even subordinate to the procedural aspects of a policy problem. The analyst or process manager creates ‘loose coupling’ of procedural aspects and substantive aspects of a problem." 6) Interactive This style assumes that "individuals – experts, analysts, clients, stakeholders and target groups – have or may have differing views of the ‘same’ policy problem. An insight relevant to policy can be obtained by bringing about a confrontation and interaction of different views." The styles mentioned above are based on underlying values and orientations, which determine in what way a policy analyst or others will view the quality of the policy analysis study and the criteria that will be applied to examine it. According to Mayer et al. these criteria can be made explicit by addressing the following questions: • Rational style. What is good knowledge? • Argumentative style. What is good for the debate? • Client advice style. What is good for the client/problem owner? • Participatory style. What is good for democratic society? • Process style. What is good for the process? • Interactive style. What is good for mutual understanding? == References == THEORETICAL APPROACHES IN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNICATION Today, development communication has shifted from modernization and dependency theories to more normative and holistic approaches. The modernization paradigm, which became dominant in the 1945 to 1965, supported the transfer of technology and the socio-political culture of the developed societies to the traditional societies. Development then was defined as economic growth. The main idea of the modernization perspective is the idea of evolution where development is conceived as directional and cumulative, predetermined and irreversible, progressive, and immanent with reference to the nation state. Here, the developed western societies seem to be the ultimate goals which the less developed societies strive to reach. These two sectors, the traditional and the modern, were regarded as two stages of development and in time the differences between them were to disappear because of the natural inclination towards equilibrium. The problem was to remove the barriers, which were only to be found in the traditional society. These barriers can be removed through at least five mechanisms: 1. demonstration, whereby the developing world tries to catch up with the more developed by adopting more advanced methods and techniques; 2. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Development Communication and Policy Sciences」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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