Exam 1: Public Policy and Politics

Which of the following are examples of pure public goods?

The "tragedy of the commons" refers to the situation in which individuals attempt to maximize their use of ______ without regard to their degradation or depletion.

The American system of governance adheres to the principle of ______.

How are criteria used to evaluate public policy? Discuss the criteria that policy analysts use to evaluate an existing or proposed policy and the focus of each criterion.

During and after the Great Recession, various governmental entities proposed policies to create jobs, increase the minimum wage, and regulate financial markets. This flurry of policy making was likely a result of which context, affecting the policy-making process?

One would use the ______ criterion in an effort to evaluate how successful a policy is at meeting its goals.

Describe the various ways that citizens can have an impact on the policy-making process.

The ______is a regulatory agency responsible for ensuring public safety for a wide range of consumer products.

When the Environmental Protection Agency adopts regulations that force power plants to take into consideration the actual costs to deal with pollution and the health problems it causes, what type of market failure is the EPA addressing?

A(n) ______ occurs when the public has incomplete information in order to make a decision or the decision is too complex and difficult for the average citizen to know how best to proceed.

National defense and public parks are examples of ______, which the private sector has no incentive to provide, are jointly consumed, and cannot exclude some people from benefiting.

Which of the following terms refer to deliberate critical thinking about the causes of public problems and which policy choices make the most sense to address them?

The Tea Party movement and other factors have led to increased polarization between political parties at the state and national levels. This polarized situation affects the ability of legislatures to enact policies. This situation describes a strong impact of the ______ context on policy making.

Which of the following are considered public goods?

______ are the authorized means for pursuing goals.

About ______ % of states allow citizen-generated initiatives.

______ are economic justifications for why government becomes involved in societal problems.

How can the social context affect the development of public policy? Provide an example as part of your answer.

Which statement describes government policy with regard to regulation of amusement park rides in the United States?

Choose three of the contexts that surround policy making and explain how each context can affect the decisions that are made or can influence the policy emphases that emerge. As part of your explanation of a context, give an example of how a certain context had an impact on a policy that was enacted.