How can society best respond to people with atypical neurological development? Should we concentrate on providing medical care, or on ensuring civil rights? Addressing these questions, Dana Lee Baker offers a provocative analysis of the ways that intersecting agendas—prevention, civil rights, providing specialized care, and celebrating disability culture—compete to make disability    More >

Homelessness once was considered an aberration. Today it is a normalized feature of US society.  It is also, argue Elizabeth Beck and Pamela Twiss, an industry: the embrace of neoliberal policies and piecemeal efforts to address the problem have ensured a steady production of homeless people, as well as a plethora of disjointed social services that often pathologize individuals instead of    More >

Conservatives and liberals agree that President Bill Clinton's effort to lift the military's gay ban was perhaps one of the greatest blunders of his tenure in office. Conservatives argue that Clinton should have left well enough alone; liberals believe that he should have ordered the military to accept homosexuals rather than agreeing to the compromise "don't ask, don't    More >

Through case studies of two prison systems—the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Dutch prison system—Arjen Boin identifies the challenges and opportunities that confront public managers who want to reorient correctional policy and make prisons more effective. Crafting Public Institutions contrasts the two prison systems to show how focused leadership—or its    More >

New technology has offered the public the opportunity to witness police use of force far more frequently than in the past—and has brought into sharp focus a number of big questions. Where does police power to use force come from? How have the federal courts ruled on the subject?  What sort of guidelines have police departments given their officers, and are they appropriate guidelines?    More >

Despite a broad political environment conducive to deregulation, television is one industry that consistently fails to loosen government's regulatory grip. To explain why, Lori Brainard explores the technological changes, industry structures, and political dynamics influencing this policy quagmire.   Contradicting current scholarly and popular accounts, Brainard demonstrates that new    More >

James Brasfield explores the full gamut of health policy issues confronting the United States—ranging from Medicare and Medicaid, to the heated controversies surrounding health care reform, to the "sleeping giant" of long-term care. Notable features of the text include balanced discussions of: • how the real-world policy process works • competing proposals for    More >

In the more than a decade since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act, questions about the law continue to be vigorously debated. What political dynamics led to its passage? Why has it been subject to so many existential threats? What accounts for its survival and growth? How can its performance best be evaluated? Addressing these questions, James Brasfield eschews partisan rhetoric to    More >

Every year, the US Department of Defense allocates more than $400 billion to for-profit firms. Which raises the question: Where does the money go? Thomas Bruneau takes a deep dive into the murky waters of national defense outsourcing to answer that question. Moving beyond the issue of private military contractors, Bruneau investigates the scope, legality, and implications of the private    More >

What drives cities to pursue large-scale, high-profile events like the Olympic games? What are the consequences for citizens and local governments? Investigating local politics in three U.S. cities—Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Salt Lake City—as they vied for the role of Olympic host, this book provides a compelling narrative of the evolving political economy of modern megaevents. The    More >

Despite billions of government dollars spent in the attempt, we are no closer than we were three decades ago to solving the problem of homelessness. Why? Tackling these questions, the authors of Ending Homelessness explore the complicated and often dysfunctional relationship between efforts to address homelessness and the realities on the street.    More >

How can health-access advocates beat the wealthy pharmaceutical industry, which has the biggest spending lobby in Washington? Ramón Castellblanch provides a ringside seat at the battle as he reveals how activists in Vermont, Maine, and California took on Big Pharma in their state legislatures to promote better and cheaper access to prescription drugs—and ultimately pushed Congress to    More >

From aspirin to Viagra to the latest cancer treatment, the Food and Drug Administration acts as a gatekeeper determining what medicines are legally available in the United States. But in fulfilling that regulatory role, Stephen Ceccoli argues, the FDA may inadvertently be promoting new drugs at the expense of public health. The FDA's initial mandate to protect health grew out of    More >

Drones. "Obamacare." Immigration. The economy. Gun control. Topics in the news on a daily basis, all the subject of heated policy debates. This new edition of Public Policy: Perspectives and Choices—thoroughly revised to reflect a half-decade of significant changes in the policy environment—is designed to give students the tools that they need to analyze and assess the    More >

What was the role of the Federal Reserve System in the 2008 financial crisis—as a cause of the crisis, as the most important government agency to respond, and as the center of federal efforts to prevent another crisis? J. Kevin Corder provides an incisive account of the Fed choices that contributed to the "crash of 2008." Centering his analysis on the oversight of mortgage    More >

This popular textbook has been completely revised to reflect key changes in policy and research of the past decade, including current trends in legislation, court procedures, child welfare and criminal justice policies. The new edition also reflects the buregoning multi-disciplinary, scholarly literature on the physical and sexual abuse of children, including less-explored topics such as    More >

This comprehensive overview of US environmental regulation—from the inception of the EPA through the Bush administration—goes beyond traditional texts to consider alternatives to the existing regulatory regime, as well as the challenges posed by the global nature of environmental issues. Thoughtful and evenhanded, Governing the Environment covers the full range of topics relevant to    More >

The third edition of Contemporary Regulatory Policy brings this classic text completely up to date—reflecting more than a decade of policy changes and including an entirely new chapter on food safety regulation. Beyond their focus on seven key policy arenas, the authors confront the broad problems of partisan polarization and congressional gridlock. They also consider the significance of    More >

Long a source of contention and ambiguity in Washington, the US Institute of Peace (USIP) is seen by some as a vital part of the US national security apparatus, by others as a counter to the influence of militarism in US foreign policy, and by still others as an example of fiscal irresponsibility and bureaucratic redundancy—when it is noticed at all. Michael English traces the history of    More >

How are budget decisions made by the US government? Is it fair to blame skyrocketing deficits on an inability to curtail spending? How—and why—are taxing and spending decidedly separate political processes? Emphasizing budgetary politics rather than economic theories, Patrick Fisher offers a clear, thorough overview of how money flows through our government coffers. A welcome    More >

"It's my land, I can do whatever I want with it." "This is our neighborhood (or city, or park), and we should be the ones deciding how it's used." These are two strongly held—and diametrically opposed—views of appropriate land use. As John G. and Leslie Pickering Francis demonstrate, the debate about what to do with land is messy, complex, and often based on    More >

In his masterful study of the relationship between refugees and the United States, covering seven decades of immigration history, David Haines shows how both the refugees and their new communities have struggled with national and ethnic identities, and also the effect that this struggle has had on US institutions and attitudes.    More >

Despite legal affirmations of women's rights to abortion, actual access to the procedure in North America is increasingly curtailed. Melissa Haussman analyzes this disturbing disparity between official policies and daily realities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Haussman examines the successes of US antichoice groups—groups that have extended their reach to effectively contest    More >

How did the European Union come to be the global leader in setting data privacy standards? And what is the significance of this development? Dorothee Heisenberg traces the origins of the stringent EU privacy laws, the responses of the United States and other governments, and the reactions and concerns of a range of interest groups. Analyzing the negotiation of the original 1995 EU Data Protection    More >

In Capitalism and Justice, John Isbister takes a practical approach to some of the most important questions of economic and social justice in the context of the global economy: How big a spread of incomes from rich to poor, for example, is consistent with social justice? Should inheritances be abolished? What sort of commitment should a rich country like the United States make to foreign aid?    More >

Seldom do we notice, let alone explicitly acknowledge, that public policies set distinct parameters for gender. But as Creating Gender compellingly demonstrates, in reality governments do use policy—to legitimize and support some gender-based behaviors, while undermining others. Looking in depth at the case of welfare reform, but considering a wide range of policy arenas, the authors    More >

Whistleblowers can ruin lives—and can save them. Is it worth it? Roberta Ann Johnson explores when and how—and to what effect—people make the choice to blow the whistle. Engrossing case studies from the tobacco industry, to NASA, to the FDA illustrate clearly how individual efforts can and do transform institutions, shape public policy, and serve as a force for democratization.    More >

In the last decades of the twentieth century, many political leaders declared that government was, in the words of Ronald Reagan, "the problem, not the solution." But on closer inspection, argues Elaine Kamarck, the revolt against government was and is a revolt against bureaucracy—a revolt that has taken place in first world, developing, and avowedly communist countries alike. To    More >

Choice Outstanding Academic Book! How do transformative changes in public policy take place? Why do some issues rise to the top of the political agenda, while others are completely ignored? What makes some major policy initiatives succeed—at times, even when the odds are decidedly against them—while others fail or languish for decades? Answering those questions is the purpose of    More >

In the past fifteen years, presidents from two parties, supported by parents, teachers, and civic leaders have tried—and generally failed—to increase student achievement through federal policymaking. Supposedly pathbreaking legislation to "leave no child behind" has hardly made a dent in the problem. What is going on? Kevin R. Kosar delves into the political maneuvering    More >

Mark Martinez reveals how the myth of the "invisible hand" has distorted our understanding of the development and actual performance of modern capitalist markets. Martinez draws on historical cases to make it clear that political processes and the state are not only instrumental in making capitalist markets work, but that there would be no capitalist markets or wealth creation without    More >

How is U.S. public policy made? This comprehensive survey, designed to help students and scholars understand the complexity of policymaking, traces the Employee Commute Option (ECO) step by step from initial idea through enactment and implementation to evaluation and reformulation. The authors integrate two dominant theories in the policy analysis literature—the policy cycle model and the    More >

One of the most durable myths of US political economy is that we take from the rich and give to the poor—penalizing the rich for their hard work and rewarding the undeserving. Mark Mattern turns that story on its head. Documenting the everyday, institutionalized ways that income and wealth are transferred upward in the United States, Mattern shows how in fact the bottom subsidizes the    More >

Does Alaska's reliance on oil and gas mean that it inevitably will be controlled by corporate energy interests? Or can the state use its vast resource holdings to manage a more symmetrical partnership? The Political Economy of Oil in Alaska investigates the complex relationship Alaska has with its most precious commodity. Offering a new perspective on the challenges of oil-dependent    More >

Elusive Equality explores how government institutions—the executive branch, the federal courts, Congress, and state legislatures—affect the legal status of women. In this fully revised and updated edition, Susan Gluck Mezey traces the evolving legal parameters of gender equality from early court rulings through the most recent legislation and judicial decisions. She also examines    More >

Despite women's many gains in the political, economic, and social spheres, equality remains elusive—and in some areas, ground is being lost. Why? Why does the pay gap between women and men persist? Why is sexual harassment and assault so prevalent in schools and universities? Why are efforts to diminish women's individual autonomy, restricting their access to reproductive health    More >

The Making of Telecommunications Policy examines the history, politics, and impact of telecommunications policy. Beginning with a comparison of several alternate views of the future, Olufs explains how government action makes the widespread use of some new technologies more likely than others. He details the challenges that rapid advances in communications technologies pose for policymaking    More >

Legalized gambling has spread like wildfire through the United States, with only Hawaii and Utah still prohibiting all of its forms. The reason? Gambling has become the method of choice for states in search of additional revenue: in 2002 alone, state lottery sales exceeded $42 billion, netting nearly $14 billion in "voluntary taxes." Gambling Politics examines this dramatic development    More >

As the cost of higher education continues to rise, students increasingly rely on borrowing to pay for college. But is the result the improved socioeconomic position that they anticipate? Borrowing Inequality explores the real impact of loans on minority and low-income students. Drawing on a national study of student-borrowing patterns, Derek Price finds that racial and ethnic minorities and    More >

Mass killings. Gang violence. Street crimes. Suicides. Accidental shootings. The United States is enduring a literal epidemic of gun violence. Howard Rahtz, drawing on decades of experience as a police officer all too familiar with the horrors that guns can cause, delves deeply into the nature and impact of this epidemic. Rahtz explores each element of the triangle of ability, desire, and    More >

How do individuals move from being homeless to finding safe, stable, and secure places to live? Can we recreate the conditions that helped them most? What policies are needed to support what worked—and to remove common obstacles? Addressing these questions, Jamie Rife and Donald Burnes start from the premise that the most important voices in efforts to end homelessness are the ones most    More >

When state and federal governments intrude, abdicate responsibility, or prove unable to respond to local needs, how can cities fight back? How can they promote and defend their own interests? Addressing these questions, Lori Riverstone-Newell explores the emergence of local policy activism and its impact in a number of state and federal policy arenas.    More >

Does federal funding of a church's welfare-to-work program constitute government endorsement of a particular religion? Do religious organizations that accept public funds lose the legal autonomy needed to preserve their religious identity and mission? Wading into the constitutional battle over whether government can/should enlist the help of religious organizations in delivering social    More >

Assuring that low-income children have health coverage would seem to be a noncontroversial and popular issue. Yet, the policy history of US children’s health insurance is full of drama, and the fate of the federal State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) has been marked by ideological conflict and two presidential vetoes. Why? Alice Sardell answers this question through an    More >

Social scientists have constructed elaborate theories involving policymakers as rational actors and purporting to predict and explain policy outcomes. In contrast, this provocative book paints a picture of policymakers who—coping with the uncertainty of constantly changing constraints—must simplify, taking shortcuts rather than surveying all of their options and pursuing carefully    More >

Stories of interactions between unauthorized immigrants crossing the border into Arizona and the US citizens they encounter have made headlines not only in areas adjacent to the border, but across the entire United States. How have these stories, along with adamant members of civil society—those who provide help to travelers in need, as well as those who wish to stop what they see as an    More >

Here is a book that finally identifies and develops the connections between women's politics and public policies and practices at national and international levels. Kathleen Staudt focuses on political activism and strategies that have influenced great change in state and international policies. She covers local and global institutions, from NGOs to entire governments and to international    More >

Why is climate change the subject of such vehement political rhetoric in the United States?  What explains the policy deadlock that has existed for nearly two decades—and that has resulted in the failure of US leadership in the international arena? Addressing these questions, Glen Sussman and Byron Daynes trace the evolution of US climate change policy, assess how key players—the    More >

Initiated in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks, have the reforms of the US intelligence enterprise served their purpose? What have been the results of the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and a reorganized FBI? Have they helped to reduce blind spots and redundancies in resources and responsibilities ... and to    More >

US national security compromised by Wikileaks. Towns held hostage by ransomware. Corporate websites hacked. Cyber espionage and cybercrimes are increasing in both frequency and sophistication—requiring the collection of actionable intelligence in order to combat them. Constance Uthoff provides a comprehensive overview of cyber intelligence, explaining what it is, why it is needed, who is    More >

Choice Outstanding Academic Book! Whose fault is homelessness? Thirty years ago the problem exploded as a national crisis, drawing the attention of activists, the media, and policymakers at all levels—yet the homeless population endures to this day, and arguably has grown. David Wagner offers a major reconsideration of homelessness in the US, casting a critical eye on how we as a society    More >

The main focus of US national security policy has shifted dramatically since the years of the Obama administration, moving away from nation building and counterinsurgency efforts and toward preparing for traditional state-on-state conflict with powerful peers. The sixth edition of US National Security reflects that change. It also addresses such current issues as the impact of an increasingly    More >

In the United States today, 50 million people don't have enough food. How is this possible in one of the world's wealthiest countries? Why hasn’t the problem been solved? Is it simply an economic issue? Challenging conventional wisdom, the authors of Hunger in the Land of Plenty explore the causes and consequences of food insecurity; assess some of the major policies and programs    More >