Literature Review Essay Paper.
The acceptance of evidence based policy into the social and public arena is one of the
processes that has received a lot of great enthusiasm. This is because of the immense value and
contribution it brings when it comes to different disciplines of study such as constructivism,
medicine or even technology. Literature Review Essay Paper. This category of policy is a public one that seeks to establish various results and accomplish a number of objectives. The application and implementation of
rigorous studies so as to identify the most suitable programs that can lead to a desirable outcome
is one of the main characteristics that defines evidence based policy. The latter is also known to
bring a lot of significant improvements when it comes to fields of research such that only valid
and credible data is used to arrive at an academic conclusion. Literature Review Essay Paper.
The popularization of this policy within the fifteenth century is sufficient evidence that
illustrates the power of this tool when it comes to finding concrete solutions to issues as opposed
to short-term ones. There are many and numerous methods that are applied during the practical
application of this evidence based policy. The common denominator with all of them is the fact
that they share similar characteristics and features. This is one of the greatest benefits that makes
most institutional leaders and corporations to use them in their line of operation. At the same
time, there are also obvious shortcomings that come with this public policy and some of them
can be a deterrence to success and prosperity. This paper is an essay that explores the topic of
evidence based policy and analyzes some of the criticisms that are associated with it. Literature Review Essay Paper.
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The evolving world of business has made it mandatory for the majority of agencies,
institutions and even companies to design their policies and programs to have an inclination
towards evidence based (Huey and Ricciardelli, 2016). This means that their day-to-day
operations are structured such that they are within reasonable budgetary limits and their time is
also practical. Evidence based policies are known to have a lot of benefits when it comes to the
areas in which they are applied. One of them lies in knowing that this policy has the ability to
test a theory and evaluate it in terms of whether it can be effective (Carvalho et al, 2015). What’s
more, policies that are evidence based have the ability to separate a number of uncertainties so
that they can influence other processes positively. Literature Review Essay Paper.
Despite these merits, there are a number of criticisms that are associated with evidence
based policy. To begin with, evidence based policy makes use of research and scientific
measures to create and develop a mechanism that can be used in the execution of certain tasks.
This is clearly seen in areas such as commodity pricing, health, nutrition and even climate
change where policies have to be designed if they are to have a positive impact on people’s lives
and the society as a whole (Huey and Ricciardelli, 2016). One of the criticisms or flaw that has
been associated with evidence based policy is the fact that it has a lot of disregard for any
manner of substitution effect. The article by Fopp (2015) clearly illustrates this setback where
the process of finding solutions to homelessness did not give a lot of alternatives to matters of
finding affordable homes and houses. Literature Review Essay Paper.This paper also shows that evidence based policy fails when it comes to accounting for
the changes that people exhibit in their behavior when it comes to such sensitive matters. This
failure is especially heightened once a new set of rules and regulations is introduced to govern
the process of home ownership in certain states and countries (Fopp, 2015). The implantation of
such a drastic measure would mean that people would be pushed towards finding other ways of
finding a decent place to live. Consequently, the economic and social effects of this move would
produce more disastrous results than the initial problems that the evidence based policy was
trying to solve in the first place (Fopp, 2015). Literature Review Essay Paper.
Additionally, another significant problem of this public policy is related to the method
employed in the calculation of the external costs of the harmful and dangerous activities that
characterize a specific process. Cherney and Head (2010) cite that this is one of the hugest
challenge of evidence based policies especially when it comes to making improvements on
existing issues. These authors exemplify this setback in matters of pollution and environmental
conservation where they give the example of emission of toxic gases. According to these authors,
evidence based policing fails in such a case because it does not go into the details of knowing the
subjective preferences of the immediate community. As a result, the outcome of such a process
ends up destroying the very benefits it strived to achieve. Literature Review Essay Paper.
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Cherney and Head (2010) also admit that evidence based policy brings with it a lot of
complex issues that may not augur well with the evaluation or even designing of projects and
programs. This sort of skepticism is what makes a number of governments and even state
authorities to misinterpret the real benefit and merit of this policy (Cherney and Head, 2010).
Further, some of the companies fear that policies that are evidence based may overlap with some
of the objectives that have remained instrumental to the firm for years. This criticism is supported and seconded by Hogget and Stott (2012) who also lay a lot of emphasis on how it is
difficult and strenuous to implement policies that are evidence based. This is especially true for
the legal and justice sector where offenders and criminals deserve to be punished using the same
principle of conviction. Literature Review Essay Paper.
This major setback is what makes it overly impossible to achieve equality or replication,
which is one of the characteristic features of evidence based policies (Hogget and Stott, 2012).
Furthermore, the process of finding an effective policy that is evidenced based and can tactically
take care of reforms in the police and legal departments is quite a daunting task. This fact can be
perfectly illustrated by the increase in number of riots and rebellions that have erupted in
different parts of the world. Hogget and Stott (2012) give the example of England where the riots
that were staged against the government showed that the country was in dire need of new
policies that would streamline the citizens of the state. However, these same policies did not
fulfill or even provide the much needed change within the justice department which is one of the
most sensitive dockets to any country. Literature Review Essay Paper.
Hayden and Jenkins (2014) pick up the same line of thought when they analyze one of
the most conspicuous problem of evidence based policies within the health sector. This article
states that the process of dealing with similar issues within the medical field is made overly
difficult because it is not possible to achieve the same outcome for everyone. Further, these
authors also explain that the panel of people that is tasked with the duty and obligation of
formulating these policies are only skilled in one area of study (Hogget and Stott, 2012). This
means that they are oblivious and ignorant of what goes on in other fields of learning. A classic
example of this fact is in finding solutions to cancer treatment where the evidence based policies
are designed such that they can take care of the patient’s needs. Literature Review Essay Paper.
However, such professionals may not be aware of how these policies merge with other
fields such as economics or even social development and consequently, expertise slippage is
bound to occur. This explains why evidence based policies have been criticized a lot because
they do not accomplish similar results for every activity.
Conclusion
Evidence based policy is undoubtedly one of the topics that attracts a lot of acceptance
and criticism in equal measure. The fact that this tool is actually a public policy that can be
applied to numerous fields of study, corporations and even firms is what makes it widely
acceptable. Furthermore, this versatility allows experts and professionals to embrace and
implement it in the process of formulating policies to drive their various operations. At the same
time, evidence based policies have their own share of setbacks that makes people shy away from
adopting them. One of them is related to the disregard that this public policy has for any
substitution process. Literature Review Essay Paper.
A number of authors have been able to show that this type of policy is not capable of
providing a streamlined solution to a persistent problem. This is evident when it comes to
matters of housing where it is extremely impossible to have a similar housing policy for the
entire population. Moreover, the process of implementing and even evaluating the evidence
based policies is known to be quite hectic and cumbersome. The most viable solution to all these
challenges is to find a unifying platform that can comfortably address all the challenges faced at
an individual, corporate and even nationwide level. Literature Review Essay Paper.
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References
Carvalho, I. A., Byles, J., Aquah, C., Amofah, G., Biritwum, R., Panisset, U., & Beard, J.
(2015). Informing evidence-based policies for ageing and health in Ghana. Bulletin Of
The World Health Organization, 93(1), 47-51. doi:10.2471/BLT.14.136242
Cherney, A., & Head, B. (2010). Evidence-Based Policy and Practice: key challenges for
improvement. Australian Journal Of Social Issues (Australian Council Of Social
Service), 45(4), 509-526. Literature Review Essay Paper.
Fopp, R. (2015). Problematising aspects of evidence-based policy: an analysis illustrated by an
Australian homelessness policy 1985-2008. Australian Journal Of Social Issues
(Australian Social Policy Association), 50(3), 297-317.
Hayden, C., & Jenkins, C. (2014). ‘Troubled Families’ Programme in England: ‘wicked
problems’ and policy-based evidence. Policy Studies, 35(6), 631-649.
doi:10.1080/01442872.2014.971732
Hoggett, J., & Stott, C. (2012). Post G20: The Challenge of Change, Implementing Evidence-
based Public Order Policing. Journal Of Investigative Psychology & Offender
Profiling, 9(2), 174-183. doi:10.1002/jip.1360
Huey, L., & Ricciardelli, R. (2016). From Seeds to Orchards: Using Evidence-Based Policing to
Address Canada’s Policing Research Needs. Canadian Journal Of Criminology &
Criminal Justice, 58(1), 119-131. doi:10.3138/cjccj2015.E24. Literature Review Essay Paper.