Evidence can make you and your policies more effective and powerful. This chapter provides you with ideas and inspiring case studies that showcase how evidence can support your political decision-making at different stages of the policy cycle.
The development of a policy measure usually begins with an agenda-setting process in which the topics that are considered relevant are selected. The diagnose phase focuses on understanding and describing the problem and its causes. This is followed by the design phase, in which solutions are developed and selected for the next step, the implementation phase.
During the implementation phase, a number of decisions are usually made to optimise the communication and processes. Last but not least, the implemented solution should be monitored and evaluated to determine whether it has solved the original problem and achieved the desired goals.
The findings from the evaluation are then incorporated into the next agenda-setting, not only for the same problem (if it has not been solved), but also for similar problems to which the findings can be transferred.
1. DIAGNOSE: Understanding a problem and its causes
2. DESIGN: Crafting and selecting solutions
3. IMPLEMENT: Fine-tuning the implementation of a solution
4. EVALUATE: Evaluating the output, outcome and impact of a solution