Anne Permaloff

The behavioral study of political ideology and public policy formulation

Abstract Political ideology is related to public policy formulation in a scholarly and systematic manner with surprising rarity. This article describes the use of newspaper and journal of opinion editorials as barometers of ideological content and signed digraphs as devices for hypothesis formulation regarding ideological change. Policy formulation for incomes policies in the Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon administrations and abortion from the 1930s to the present are used to illustrate the utility of these approaches.

Public policy for business and the economy Ideological dissensus, change and consensus

A substantial literature shows that ideology, often describable on a conservative-liberal spectrum, is a significant independent variable influencing the formulation of public policy. The 1960s–1990s are frequently depicted as decades of ideological tumult. However, analysis of the editorials of major publications shows that substantial agreement existed on public policy directions for business and the economy throughout most of these years. Furthermore, in some policy areas initial dissensus was followed by significant movement toward consensus. A theory presented here based on the concepts of successful market operation, market misbehavior, and market breakdown explains in large part the reasons for this long term policy consensus as well as movement from dissensus to consensus.

Supplementing Zupan's Measurements of the Ideological Preferences of U.S. Presidents

Mark A. Zupans synthetic Americans for Democratic Actionpresidential ratings published in Public Choice in 1992 runfrom 1947–1989. The authors extend Zupans ratings through1999.

Liberal–conservative conflict and consensus in policy making

Abstract This study argues that ideology can play a major and positive role in the policy making process. Using the policy areas of civil rights and public education, it demonstrates that when policy initiatives are both ideologically consistent and based on a clear delineation of the dynamics of how the policy will change the current situation for the better, the ensuing debate between liberals and conservatives generally results in effective policy. When both elements are not present, ineffective policy results.

The behavioural study of political ideology and public policy: Testing the Janda, Berry, and Goldman model

In previous work the authors found a variant of the theory of market failure to be a way to link political ideology and public policy for business and economics. However, the theory of market failure says little about other aspects of ideology and domestic public policy. Janda, Berry, and Goldman offer a model of ideological attitudes toward equality, freedom, and order that might explain ideological positions toward public policy unrelated to business and the economy. The present study compares the Janda, Berry, and Goldman model to depictions of liberalism and conservatism in a variety of scholarly journals and finds the model to be partly valid.

Computer Tools for Crafting Clear and Attractive Diagrams in Social Science

This article evaluates two categories of software with which diagrams can be created. Diagram- building programs are usable mainly for drawing simple figures such as flow charts, decision trees, and organization charts—essentially boxes containing labels connected to one another with lines. Inexpensive general-purpose drafting or computer-aided design (CAD) programs generate much more complex images with greater varieties of shapes. The evaluation criteria used are flexibility—variety of drawings that can be rendered; variety of built-in shapes; attractiveness of results; exportability; ease of operation; screen-printer agreement; ease of drawing a flow chart, simple graphics, and complex diagrams; and automatic line routing. All but one program are Windows-based, and most are relatively inexpensive.

ADA policies and the editorial positions of four publications

Abstract This article explores the utility of using editorials as measures of ideology and as a mechanism for linking ideology with public policy formulation. It relates editorial positions taken by the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and National Review to Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) scores on domestic policy, highlighting the advantages inherent in the use of editorials. It also answers critiques that the Times and Post are not liberal in orientation.

Microcomputer Expert Systems

An expert system is a computer program that consists of decision rules that can be applied to problems according to logical relationships established by the system’s creator. It is most useful when it is part of a decision support system in a technical or administrative setting, often in association with database management programs (Grafton & Permaloff, 1986). In a typical expert/database management system, the user keys data into a database or uses data that are already part of a central database ; then the expert system is used to arrive at appropriate decisions, which might concern eligibility for participation in a welfare program or whether someone is using inside information for stock speculation. An expert system conclusion might take the following form: &dquo;Mr. Jones should not be allowed unemployment compensation because he has not been living in the state for the required three months.&dquo; It might also be expressed as a probability: &dquo;There is a 90% chance that Mr. Smith’s pattern of stock buying and selling is due to an illegal use of inside information.&dquo; The judgment might then be made part of Mr. Jones’s or Mr. Smith’s file (see Hayes-Roth, Waterman, and Lenat [ 1983, pp. 1316]). Although the expert system application most often written about is diagnosis, as in the examples above, G. David Garson and others have begun using expert-system development programs to build rule sets or decision trees that explain social phenomena (Garson, 1987). The resulting programs constitute an expert system that can be used to simu-

Expert System Development Programs and Their Alternatives

An expert system is a computer program that emulates a human expert in the solution of a problem in his or her specialty area. Such programs are usually thought of as consisting of a body of knowledge and decision or interference rules, together with input-output routines that allow interaction between the program and a lay user. Michaelsen et al. define an expert as &dquo;an individual who is widely recognized as being able to solve a particular type of problem that most other people cannot solve nearly as efficiently or effectively.&dquo;’

Graphics for Illustrations

Microcomputer programs that generate graphic images on paper come in many forms including ones that produce statistical plots, maps, and drawings for illustrations. Generally speaking, statistical plots are best produced with statistics packages, although relatively simple ones can be generated with business oriented programs such as Harvard Graphics. Business graphics software is also sometimes used to improve the appearance of images produced by statistics packages. Some also contain drawing modules. Maps, typically containing shaded boundaries to characterize data distributions, are usually best done with dedicated mapping programs such as ATLAS*GRAPHICS and MapInfo, but a few powerful statistics packages such as SYGRAPH and SASGRAPH can also be used.1 This article deals with software used for the production of graphics for such purposes as high quality illustrations for articles, book chapters, reports, and professional presentations, as well as transparencies and handouts for classroom use. The programs we examine generate three major categories of images: flow and organization charts; drawings; and paintings.