Prolegomena to Policy Sciences.

Yehezkel Dror

Expert InsightsPublished 1970

An article for the first issue of [Policy Sciences], of which Dror is an editor. A clear definition of policy sciences is urgently needed to protect the term from misapplication. Policy sciences is a supradiscipline focused upon public policymaking methods, using behavioral and physical sciences and integrating many analytical approaches. It differs from system analysis by (1) tackling much broader, more complex, and more ill-defined problems that are nonquantitative; (2) considering political feasibility, consensus maintenance, and the social power implications of alternative policies; (3) recognizing the importance of the extra-rational and irrational; (4) seeking to encourage creativity and "organized dreaming"; (5) seeking to distill the tacit knowledge of experienced decisionmakers; (6) recognizing others' value systems (e.g., self-sacrifice or revenge rather than economy and efficiency); and (7) deliberately shaping its own future and educating to overcome the trained incapacities of workers in the normal social sciences and decision sciences. 35 pp.

Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web Only
  • Year: 1970
  • Pages: 35
  • Document Number: P-4283

Citation

Chicago Manual of Style

Dror, Yehezkel, Prolegomena to Policy Sciences. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1970. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P4283.html.
BibTeX RIS

This publication is part of the RAND paper series. The paper series was a product of RAND from 1948 to 2003 that captured speeches, memorials, and derivative research, usually prepared on authors' own time and meant to be the scholarly or scientific contribution of individual authors to their professional fields. Papers were less formal than reports and did not require rigorous peer review.

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.

RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.