Power, Knowledge, and Politics: Policy Analysis in the States

John A. Hird, associate professor of political science and the director of the Center for Public Policy and Administration at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst has compiled an interesting book analyzing the nature of policy institutions. Central to this is an analysis of the connection between policy analysis and political decision making. Using empirical and comparative methods, this study examines the role of nonpartisan policy research organizations (NPRO) within state legislatures. This volume fills a void in the literature on policy analysis in the United States, and is one of the first to study the NPROs in the United States.

The book determines the usefulness and authority of policy analysis in the decision making process of state legislators; the influence that politics and political institutions have in shaping the nature of the policy analyses conducted by NPROs; and the positive and negative effects of policy research on democratic decision making. The discussion begins by describing policy analysis and examining the origin and history of NPROs in the United States, detailing the role they play in shaping policy. This is followed by a rigorous analysis of the effectiveness and influence of the organizations, determining the structure and importance of policy analysis. His investigation is supplemented by a very extensive data set compiled by gathering information from NPROs or similar organizations in all 50 states and from hundreds of state legislators, using both questionnaires and telephone interviews.

Hird concludes that the value of policy analysis from NPROs varies from state to state and that the size of the organization correlates directly to its influence. In general, his findings showed that legislators clearly value the work of NPROs. Hird warns that in order to sustain influence, NPROs must remain nonpartisan and break away from the tendency to research short‐term reactive issues and focus more on studies of long‐term issues. He also believes that the influence of NPROs depends on how effectively these organizations adapt to changing political environments.

This book is a valuable resource for both students and scholars interested in the complex process of policy making in the United States. It is written in a manner that makes it accessible to readers without a background in research methodology and thus could be utilized in both a graduate or undergraduate classroom. Power, Knowledge, and Politics is a major contribution to the field of public policy, and a good read for anyone interested in policy making in the United States.