A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE ROLE OF ANTHROPOLOGY IN PUBLIC POLICY

In comparison with the other social and behavioral sciences, there has been a general lack of anthropological input or interest in public policy.
This absence from the public policy arena has been the result of both historical developments and theoretical biases within the field. Nevertheless, there have been certain periods when significant numbers of anthropologists have worked in policy areas-the 1930s. World War Il-but even then their influence was not great. However, in recent years we have witnessed a rapidly growing emphasis on public policy in applied anthropology which promises to give the discipline the opportunity to become atruly holistic policy science.
In addition to the discussion of the factors which have impeded and, more recently, contributed to anthropological involvement with public policy, each of the symposium papers is briefly introduced.     

THE FLUORIDATION CONTROVERSY IN VICTORIA: PUBLIC POLICY AND GROUP POLITICS

Abstract: Fluoridation of public water supplies has been a political issue which generates a high level of public controversy. Opposition has been relatively effective, especially at the local level where the initiative for fluoridation usually originates. Authorities responsible for the decision have often been unwilling to adopt a firm policy in the belief that public opinion is seriously divided on the issue. The reasons for the success of the opposition, and for the indecision of the authorities, are examined in relation to the history of the fluoridation issue in Victoria, where the State government eventually decided in favour of compulsory fluoridation after considering the question for twenty years. The paper concludes by drawing some implications from this case for students of policy formation in areas of controversy.     

PROBLEM DEFINITION AND THE ALASKA NATIVES: ETHNIC IDENTITY AND POLICY FORMATION

This case study of an ethnoterritorial minority's role in agenda setting argues that the extant agenda setting literature does not take into account different cultural perceptions of the definitions of problems. Using the hearings on the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971, the differen- ces in understanding of the problem by the Alaskan natives who testified before the Committee and the Senators who received the testimony are examined.     

INTRODUCTION: WATER RESOURCES AND PUBLIC POLICY

Research in water resource policy historically has reflected more general trends in public policy analysis. This symposium focuses more narrowly upon a sample of some contemporary issues.     

PUBLIC PROTEST AND PUBLIC POLICY: THE ANTI-APARTHEID MOVEMENT AND POLITICAL INNOVATION*

With the Comprehensive Anti-apartheid Act of 1986, Congress instituted economic sanctions against South Africa, thereby reversing the historic course of U. S. foreign policy. This political innovation constituted a great victory for minority interests. This article utilizes the agenda-setting literature to examine the relationship between Anti-apartheid movement activity in the United States and adoption of economic sanctions against South Africa. The analysis is based upon an events data set consisting of 1353 events appearing in the New York Times between 1960 and 1986, interviews with activists and legislators, and archived materials. The ar- ticle concludes that although the Anti-apartheid movement was only in- directly involved in moving sanctions legislation to the policy agenda, the movement exerted direct influence in the policy process once the legislation had agenda status.     

THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC POLICY: IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHING

Increasingly, the nations of the world are becoming more interdependent among themselves. This is true not only in an economic sense, but in a political sense as well. The field of public administration has become internationalized, presenting a new challenge to both teachers and students of the discipline. The article argues that special attention should be given to teaching students how to manage policy interdependency. Furthermore, the interdisciplinary approach is advocated as a method of broadening students' perspectives in public administration. In concluding the article, the author offers several recommendations for improving public administration programs.     

PUBLIC POLICY AND POLITICAL CHOICE: A REVIEW ARTICLE

Abstract: In reviewing the literature on policy studies, as in studying policy making itself, what you see depends on where you look. Studies of public policy vary widely in forms, methods and rationale. This paper does not try to categorize and capture the spirit of all aspects of a diverse and burgeoning literature. Its focus is on a number of recent books that straddle broadly the categories of process and administrative studies. The questions addressed in the volumes discussed are about how institutions handle issues in public policy, their relevance to the actual content of policy, and the ways in which individuals and groups within them see and respond to opportunities for choice. Each book is concerned with questions of theory but the books do not, either singly or together, suggest a single compelling theory of institutions and policy processes. Indeed, considering their theoretical sophistication, one may doubt whether such a goal is practicable. The better the work done on policy studies the more open-ended theoretically the field seems to be.