• Define the problem
• Gather evidence
• Identify causes
• Evaluate a policy
• Develop solutions
• Select best solution
• Benefits & Costs
• The Prince System
• Political Strategies

• Information Tools
• Student Resources
• Teacher Information
• Site Map
• Help

The Prince System

Good public policy ideas do not become policies without sufficient political support. A method for forecasting the chances that a policy will be implemented is the Prince System.

The Prince System, named after Machiavelli's famous book, The Prince, is a technique for assessing the relative support and opposition of various individuals, groups, and organizations for a public policy decision. The Prince System requires that you do the following:

1. Identify the players likely to have a direct or indirect impact on the decision.
2. Determine issue position-whether each player supports, opposes, or is neutral toward the decision.
3. Determine power-how effective each player is in blocking the decision, helping make it happen, or affecting the implementation of a decision.
4. Determine priority-how important the decision is to each player.
5. Calculate the likelihood that the policy will be implemented.

Describing the Policy to be Implemented