Module POLM227M for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
POLM227M: Behavioural Public Policy and Administration
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy briefing outline | 750 words | 2 | Oral within seminar |
| Essay outline | 750 words | 1,4,6 | Oral within seminar |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 50 | 3,000 words | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | Written |
| Policy Briefing aimed at your own countrys government using chosen policy area (written) | 50 | 3,000 words | 1,2,4,6,7,8 | Written |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (3,000 words) | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Policy Briefing | Policy Briefing (3,000 words) | 1,2,4,6,7,8 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Cohen, I.G., Fernandez Lynch, H. & Ronertson, C.T. (Eds). 2016. Nudging Health: Health Law and Behavioural Economics.Johns Hopkins University Press.
Galizzi, Matteo M. 2014. “What is really behavioral in behavioral health policy? And does it work?” Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 36(1): 25-60.
Grimmelikhuijsen, S., Jilke, S., Olsen, A.L. & Tummers, L. 2016. ‘Behavioral Public Administration’, Public Administration Review.
James, S. 2012. “The contribution of behavioral economics to tax reform in the United Kingdom”, Journal of Socio-Economics, 41: 468-475.
John, P. 2016. ‘Behavioural Approaches: How Nudges Lead to more Intelligent Policy Design’, in Philippe Zittoun and B. Guy Peters. (Eds). Contemporary Approaches to Public Policy, Palgrave Macmillan.
John, P. et al. 2011. Nudge, Nudge, Think,Think: Experimenting with Ways to Change Civic Behaviour. London: Bloomsbury Academic.
Kahneman, D. 2013. Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
Low, D. (Ed). 2011. Behavioural Economics and Policy Design: Examples from Singapore. Civil Service College Singapore/ World Scientific.
Ly, K. & Soman, D. 2013. Nudging Around the World. Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto.
OECD. 2017. Behavioural Insights and Public Policy: Lessons from Around the World. OECD. Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264270480-en. Read online:
Oliver, A. 2017. The origins of behavioural public policy. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Oliver, A. 2013. Ed. Behavioural Public Policy. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Oliver, Adam. 2013. “From Nudging to Budging: Using Behavioural Economics to Inform Public Sector Policy”, Journal of Social Policy, 42(4): 685-700.
Shafir, E (Ed). 2012. The Behavioural Foundations of Public Policy. Princetown University Press.
Sunstein, C. 2016. The Ethics of Influence: Government in the Age of Behavioral Science. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Sunstein, C. Forthcoming. ‘Do People Like Nudges?, Administrative Law Review , Forthcoming. Draft Working Paper Available at https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2604084
Sunstein, C. 2015. Why Nudge? The Politics of Libertarian Paternalism. Yale University Press.
Thaler, R. and C. Sunstein. 2008. Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness. New Haven, Yale University Press.
