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PADM 7331 --- Special Topics: Analyzing Social Policy and Inequality
Spring 2015
Professor Michael Craw
Office: 641 Ross Hall
Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday 4-6 p.m.
Office phone: (501) 569-3402
Cell phone: (517) 410-4175
Class time: Tuesday 6-9 p.m.
Class room: 321 Ross Hall
E-mail: mccraw@ualr.edu
Course objectives
Any serious study of American politics and public policy today must include a firm
understanding of social policy. Social policy comprises those areas of public policy that
distribute or redistribute society’s resources across lines of economic class, race, gender and
other broad social categories, including such issues as poverty, racial and gender inequalities,
taxes, health care, education, urban renewal and labor relations. More often than not, these issues
pit social groups in a zero-sum game and thus often generate much political conflict. Moreover,
social policy issues have increasingly come to dominate the policy agenda at federal, state and
local levels. Studying social policy, then, can shed light on how we govern ourselves today.
Our main objective in this course is to develop analytical tools for explaining the causes of social
and economic inequalities in society, analyzing the impact of social policy on these inequalities,
and evaluating proposed alternatives in social policy. These skills will prepare you to make
effective arguments about public policy and thus are essential for aspiring legislators, policy
advocates, nonprofit administrators, professional policy analysts and government officials. In
this way, this course complements and expands on the analytic toolkit you have developed in
your research methods and policy analysis courses. By the end of this course, you will have
demonstrated your ability to:
--- Evaluate the impact of social policies on individuals, social groups and society
--- Develop arguments about the scope and causes of social and economic inequality
--- Critique alternative policy proposals for addressing social and economic inequalities.
Plan for the course
We will organize our study of social policy around three important changes occurring in
American society: significantly increasing levels of income inequality; changing household and
family structure; and increased social acceptance for gay and lesbian people. Each of these
changes is inter-related with a significant arena of American social policy. The first part of the
course focuses on the re-emergence of significant levels of income inequality in the United
States since the mid-1970s. We consider Hacker’ and Pierson’s argument that unequal
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representation in American policymaking and subsequent changes in social policy explain this
increasing inequality. Building on this idea, we then consider the impact of a nation’s social
safety net on both economic growth and economic equality. We will particularly evaluate Arthur
Okun’s argument that a “trade-off” exists between policies that promote economic growth and
those that reduce poverty and income inequality by comparing policy regimes and economic
outcomes in the United States, Western Europe and Scandinavia.
In the second part to the course, we analyze significant changes occurring in the structure of
American families. Two changes stand out. First is increasing numbers of childless households
and a decreasing fertility rate. These changes have a significant impact on pension and social
insurance programs, particularly Social Security. These changes are inter-related with changes in
labor-force participation by women and the choices women make concerning motherhood and
career. Second is increasing numbers of single-parent households. Single-parents, and
particularly single mothers, are especially vulnerable to poverty, and thus these changes are
inter-related with the level of child poverty. We will see that both increasing numbers of
childless households and single-parent households reflect significant changes in how women
make decisions about motherhood and work in American and Western societies and they reflect
on-going debates over family and social welfare policies in these countries.
In the third part to the course, we analyze the implications of changing public attitudes about gay
and lesbian people, and particularly about same-sex relationships. In recent years, multiple
countries and some U.S. states have adopted legislation that recognizes same-sex relationships to
varying degrees, and recognition of same-sex relationships remains a prominent issue at the
federal level and in many states. More generally, this policy issue exemplifies the emergence of
“culture war” issues in American politics, i.e. policy issues that hinge on rights and/or values
more so than on material well-being. Consequently, we consider the nature of policy analysis on
such morally-tinged issues, as well as analyzing the implications of recognition of same-sex
relationships and the politics of adoption of such policies.
Communications
I encourage and expect contact from you over the semester. The easiest way to reach me is by email (mccraw@ualr.edu). You may also reach me at my cell number above during reasonable
hours (between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m.). Or you may see me during my office hours or by making an
appointment to see me. I frequently am at my office beyond my posted office hours, so please
feel free to come in at other times when my office door is open.
I frequently use UALR e-mail and the course Blackboard system to conduct course business. If
you do not use Blackboard and UALR’s e-mail, please be sure to forward messages from those
accounts to the e-mail account that you use. I will also place course assignments, handouts and
PowerPoint slides on the course Blackboard site whenever possible (usually within 24 hours
after class).
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Course materials
You are required to have these books for this course:
Badgett, M.V. Lee. 2010. When Gay People Get Married. New York University Press.
Edin, Kathryn, and Maria Kefalas. 2005. Promises I Can Keep: Why Poor Women Put
Motherhood Before Marriage. University of California Press.
Gilbert, Neil. 2010. A Mother’s Work: How Feminism, the Market and Policy Shape
Family Life. Yale University Press.
Hacker, Jacob, and Paul Pierson. 2010. Winner-Take-All Politics. Simon and Schuster.
Katznelson, Ira. 2006. When Affirmative Action Was White. Norton.
All other readings are available on the course Blackboard site. You are expected to have
electronic or hard-copy access to all readings during class sessions.
Course requirements and grading
To pass the course, students must satisfactorily complete all the following requirements:
Class participation:
First analytic essay:
Policy analysis:
Second analytic essay:
20%
20%
30%
30%
Provided that all work for the course is completed, your grade is determined by the weighted
average of your scores on each of these four requirements as follows:
A:
B:
C:
D:
F:
90% and above
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
60% or below
Attendance: I tolerate 2 absences without penalty; every absence after the second lowers your
course grade by 10 percentage points (one letter grade).
Class participation: One of the primary objectives of this class is to develop your ability to
critically analyze policy issues. During class sessions, we will engage in activities such as
discussion and group work that will call on you to apply new ideas from the reading to policy
problems. Thus, it is important for you to come to class prepared to participate by having studied
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the assigned reading and completed the homework. Your class participation grade will reflect the
following factors:
--- Collegiality: Showing respect for your peers by being in class on time, staying through the
entire class, cell phones off, and respecting the views of others in class discussion.
--- Preparation: Completing reading before class, coming to class prepared with assignments
and reading materials, active participation in discussion and small group work.
--- Engagement out of class: Class sessions are not the only opportunity to discuss course ideas
with me. I want to know if you are having trouble with the material and what you like and don’t
like about the course. You may reach me by e-mail, see me during office hours, make a lunch
appointment with me, or drop by anytime my office door is open (I frequently work at my office
beyond my posted office hours).
--- Quizzes: From time to time, I may ask you to take a short in-class quiz on the reading
assignment.
--- Homework: Ideas from reading are learned much better if they are applied right away. Hence,
you will receive twelve assignments over the semester that apply or extend ideas from the
reading. These assignments will also often serve as a starting point for class discussion.
I will determine your homework based on your effort using a check system (check for a response
showing thoughtful response to the question based on the reading, 0 otherwise). You must be in
class to receive credit for a homework or lab assignment. Your homework grade counts as half
your participation grade and is computed as the number of checks you received multiplied by
10% (i.e. 10 checks =100%, 9 checks =90% and so on). Assignments completed beyond the
required 10 will earn extra credit.
Policy analysis paper: You will demonstrate your ability to make effective arguments about
public policy by researching and writing a policy analysis paper on a social policy problem of
your choosing.
Your policy analysis will be a paper of at least 3500 words (about 12 pages double-spaced) that:
1)
2)
3)
4)
Describes the scope of the problem and who is affected
Explains the causes of the problem
Describes and evaluates policies addressing the problem
Evaluates possible changes in these policies
In working on this assignment, you will i) provide a problem statement with data (due on
Friday, February 13) and ii) an annotated bibliography of sources (such as scholarly articles
and books, policy analysis from think tanks and advocacy groups, and government reports and
data) that you intend to use for your policy analysis paper (due on Friday, March 13) Your
policy analysis paper will be due at the in-class mini-conference on Tuesday, April 14.
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Analytic essays: Over the course of the semester, you will complete two take-home essays. In
these essays, you will apply the analytical tools and ideas that you learned over the course to
explain or evaluate some issue in public policy. You will have one week to prepare your
response to each question. Your response to the first essay question should be at least 1500
words (5 pages, double spaced). You will receive this question by Friday, February 13, and your
response will be due on Friday, February 20 at 11:00 p.m. Your response to the second essay
question will be at least 2500 words long (8 pages double-spaced). You will receive this
question on Tuesday, April 28, and your response will be due on Tuesday, May 5 at 11:00 p.m.
Submitting assignments
The course Blackboard page includes a folder in which homework, essay and the policy analysis
assignments are stored. You may upload your completed assignments here and/or by email to
me. I recommend both uploading your assignment to Blackboard AND emailing it to me
(mccraw@ualr.edu) to ensure I receive it. It is your responsibility to assure that I have received
your work on time. You are also welcome to submit assignments to me in hard copy. These
should be delivered to me at my office or to my mailbox on the 6th floor of Ross Hall.
In the interest of fairness, late analytic essays and literature reviews will receive a penalty of 1.0
(out of 4.0) for each day late. In addition, homework assignments must be submitted before
class time in order to earn credit.
Academic integrity
Cheating, plagiarism and other violations of academic integrity standards will not be tolerated.
Any student turning in work that is in violation of UALR academic integrity standards will
automatically receive a grade of zero in the course and the matter will be referred to the Dean of
Students’ office. An overview of academic integrity standards and the University’s policy on
academic integrity may be found at http://ualr.edu/deanofstudents/index.php/home/academicintegrity/ .
Accessiblity
Your success in this class is important to me, and it is the policy and practice of the University of
Arkansas at Little Rock to create inclusive learning environments consistent with federal and
state law. If you have a documented disability (or need to have a disability documented), and
need an accommodation, please contact me privately as soon as possible, so that we can discuss
with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) how to meet your specific needs and the
requirements of the course. The DRC offers resources and coordinates reasonable
accommodations for students with disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are established
through an interactive process among you, your instructor(s) and the DRC. Thus, if you have a
disability, please contact me and/or the DRC, at 501-569-3143 (V/TTY) or 501-683-7629 (VP).
For more information, please visit the DRC website at ualr.edu/disability.
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Course schedule
These topics and reading assignments may change throughout the course of the semester,
depending on our speed and interests. Changes will be announced in class.
Date
Tuesday, January 13
Tuesday, January 20
Topic and reading assigned
Introduction
Film: "Two American Families" (PBS Frontline, 2013)
Racial inequality and social policy
Katznelson, When Affirmative Action Was White
Tuesday, January 27
Political and economic inequality in America
Hacker and Pierson, Winner Take All Politics, introduction and
chapters 1-3
Olson, Mancur, 1965, The Logic of Collective Action, pp. 5-16
and 132-167 (Blackboard)
Schattschneider (1975), The Semisovereign People, Dryden
Press, chapter 2 (Blackboard)
Tuesday, February 3
Income inequality and social policy in the U.S.
Hacker and Pierson, chapters 4-6 and 9-10 and conclusion
Is there an equality-efficiency tradeoff?
Okun, "Increasing Equality in an Efficient Economy"
(Blackboard)
Tuesday, February 10 Smith, "The Misunderstood French Welfare State" (Blackboard)
Pontusson, "Welfare States, Redistribution, and Economic
Growth" (Blackboard)
Mitchell, "Fiscal Policy Lessons from Europe" (Blackboard)
Friday, February 13
Problem Statement due at 11 p.m.
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Analyzing gender inequality and family change
Kraft and Furlong, "Public Problems and Policy Alternatives"
(Blackboard)
Wolf, "Demography, Public Policy and 'Problem' Families"
(Blackboard)
Goldin, "The Quiet Revolution That Transformed Women's
Tuesday, February 17
Employment, Education and Family" (Blackboard)
Blau and Kahn, “Gender Differences in Pay” (Blackboard)
Recommended:
Kraft and Furlong, "Policy Analysis: An Introduction"
(Blackboard)
Friday, February 20
First Analytic Essay due at 11 p.m.
Analyzing individual choices on family and work
Gilbert, A Mother's Work, introduction and chapters 1-4
Tuesday, February 24
Recommended:
Schelling, "Micromotives and Macrobehavior" (Blackboard)
Tuesday, March 3
Alternatives in family policy
Gilbert, chapters 5-6
Gornick and Meyers, "Institutions that Support Gender Equality
in Parenthood and Employment"(Blackboard)
Recommended:
Folbre, “Disincentives to Care: A Critique of U.S. Family Policy”
(Blackboard)
Tuesday, March 10
The other side to gender inequality: parenting in poverty
Rainwater and Smeeding, "Single-Parent Poverty, Inequality and
the Welfare State" (Blackboard)
Edin and Kefalas, Promises I Can Keep, introduction and
chapters 1-4
Friday, March 13
Annotated bibliography due at 11 pm
Tuesday, March 17
Individual choices on motherhood
Edin and Kefalas, Promises I Can Keep, chapters 5-6, conclusion
and appendix A
Guest speaker: Karin Bara, executive director, Single Parent
Scholarship Fund of Pulaski County
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Tuesday, March 24
Tuesday, March 31
Spring Break
Policy and child poverty
Starobin, "The Daddy State" (Blackboard)
Lindsey, "Doing for Children What We Have Done for Seniors",
"Failure of Welfare Reform to Reduce Child Poverty" and
"Eliminating Welfare and Reducing Child Poverty" (Blackboard)
Rector, "Marriage: America's Greatest Weapon Against Child
Poverty" (Blackboard)
Recommended:
TANF Fact Sheet (Blackboard)
Tuesday, April 7
Analyzing values in policy debate
Stone, "Equity and "Liberty" (Blackboard)
Lakoff, “Framing the Dems” (Blackboard)
Fiorina, "A 50-50 Nation? Red and Blue State People are Not
That Different" and "A Closer Look at Homosexuality"
(Blackboard)
Tuesday, April 14
In-class mini-conference
Policy analysis due at beginning of class
Tuesday, April 21
Evaluating legal recognition of same-sex relationships
Badgett, When Gay People Get Married, chapters 1-6
Anderson, “Marriage: What It Is, Why It Matter, and the
Consequences of Redefining It” (Blackboard)
Recommended:
Messner, “Same Sex Marriage and the Threat to Religious
Liberty” (Blackboard)
Tuesday, April 28
Adopting same-sex relationship policies
Badgett, chapters 7-10 and Appendices 1 and 2
Ragin, "A Boolean Approach to Qualitative Comparison: Basic
Concepts" (Blackboard)
Recommended:
Ragin, "Extensions of Boolean Methods of Qualitative
Comparison" (Blackboard)
Tuesday, May 5
Second analytic essay due at 11 p.m.