Actor Interaction in the Policy Process

POSC 315: Lecture 5.2

Overview

• Concepts of interaction:
  • Policy domain
  • Policy community
  • Subgovernment & issue networks
  • Iron triangle
  • Policy regime

Policy Domain

Definition:
“A substantive area of public policy such as health care, education, or the environment.” — Stone

• Can be a single policy or a cluster of related policies
• Area where actors compete and compromise

Policy Community

Definition:
The group of actors involved in a particular policy domain

• Includes officials, organizations, interest groups, and individuals

Subgovernment

Definition:
“A network of groups within the American political system that exercise a great deal of control over specific policy areas.” — Stone

• Typically stable, closed, and long-lasting
• Includes congressional committees, bureaucratic agencies, and interest groups
• Often called "subgovernments" because of their influence over policy details

Issue Networks

Definition:
A more open and fluid set of relationships among actors interested in a policy area.

• Includes interest groups, think tanks, corporations, experts, media, and individuals
• Membership and influence can shift over time
• More dynamic and less predictable than subgovernments
• Reflects the complexity and diversity of modern policymaking

Iron Triangle

Definition:
“A stable, mutually beneficial political relationship among a congressional committee (or subcommittee), an administrative agency, and organized interests concerned with a particular policy domain.” — Stone

Example:
House Committee on Energy & Commerce, the EPA, and the American Petroleum Institute

• Iron triangles are more closed than issue networks

Iron Triangle Visual

Figure: Congressional Committees • Administrative Agencies • Interest Groups

Iron Triangle Components

• Congressional Committees: Write and oversee legislation
• Administrative Agencies: Implement and regulate policy
• Interest Groups: Advocate and provide resources
• Each group supports and reinforces the others
• Creates a stable, mutually beneficial relationship
• Often limits outside influence

• Congressional Committees: Write and oversee legislation
• Administrative Agencies: Implement and regulate policy
• Interest Groups: Advocate and provide resources
• Each group supports and reinforces the others
• Creates a stable, mutually beneficial relationship
• Often limits outside influence

Policy Regime

Definition:
“A loosely formed governance structure formed by a policy community around a particularly broad policy domain.” — Birkland

• Spans boundaries and includes many actors, coalitions, interests, and agencies
• Forms a “loose” governance structure around big, complex issues

Conclusion

• Policy domains are defined by their actors and their interactions
• Networks and coalitions shape who has influence
• Subgovernments, iron triangles, and policy regimes help explain how unofficial and official actors share power and shape outcomes