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Public Policy Analyst

 

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Articles by experts


Like case studies, articles by experts are generally less persuasive as evidence in doing PPA than statistics. First, for the article to have any value, the author has to be a recognized expert in the field that he or she is writing about. For example, during the middle of the twentieth century, Dr. Benjamin Spock was one of the country’s most well known experts on baby and child care. His books and articles on the subject influenced policies used by other doctors and hospitals. During the 1960’s, Dr. Spock also became an outspoken critic of the nation’s policies in Vietnam. Serious policy analysts, though, would not be influenced by his views on the war since he had no real expertise in that area.  This is an example of ultracrepidarianism.  (But don’t be sesquipedalian).

Like case studies, if you use quotes or excerpts from articles by experts, use them only to supplement already existing strong statistical data that you have gathered.