This book presents a lively retrospective account of a career as an inner and outer in American government and academe by a social scientist who has spent many years conducting evaluation studies of what works-and what doesn't work-in domestic public affairs. It uses rich histories of prominent policy issues and descriptions of major studies of welfare and job programs to bring to life crucial questions about how social science can best serve social policy. This is a new, substantially updated, and expanded version of a book published by Basic Books over a decade ago. Richard P. Nathan writes about the real politics of social science research in a style for both practitioners and students of American government. Reviewing the earlier version of this book, James Q. Wilson said Nathan "summarizes in plain English what he has learned about how to evaluate public policy. It is an important book for a political system that may have wearied of adopting programs simply because they make us feel good or serve ideological ends." Robert Reischauer, President of The Urban Institute, commented, "Nathan's book is essential reading for policymakers who must look for ways to identify efficient government programs."
Richard P. Nathan is Director of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government.
Foreword Michael J. Malbin Preface to the New Edition I. INTRODUCTION Chapter 1 Applying Social Science to Government The Point of View of This Book The Role of Applied Social Science Endnotes Chapter 2 Optimism and Disillusionment Applying Macroeconomics The Planning-Programming Budgeting System Demonstration and Evaluation Research Doubts Arise Other Views Demise of the PPB System Assessing Demonstration and Evaluation Research Endnotes II. DEMONSTRATION RESEARCH Chapter 3 The Nature of Demonstration Research The Vocabulary of Demonstration Research The Negative Income Tax Demonstrations Other Income Maintenance Demonstrations Demonstrations of Service-Type Programs Endnotes Chapter 4 Hurdles of Demonstration Research Selection Bias The Null Hypothesis Contamination Relations with Program Operators Quality and Consistency Treatment Cost and Quality of Data Treatment of Human Subjects The Uncertainty of Cost-Benefit Analysis Conclusion Endnotes Chapter 5 Welfare Demonstration Studies Supported Work Results Focus on Welfare Implications for Welfare Reform MDRC's Work/Welfare Demonstrations Endnotes III. EVALUATION RESEARCH Chapter 6 The Nature of Evaluation Research The Federalism Barrier Reef Scientific Implications Endnotes Chapter 7 Evaluating the California GAIN Program The GAIN Process The MDRC Evaluation The Research Challenge Discoveries in the Implementation Process Endnotes Chapter 8 The 1999 and 1996 National Welfare Reform Laws The Family Support Act of 1988 The Personal Responsibility Act of 1996 Endnotes Chapter 9 Evaluating the Family Support Act of 1998 with Irene Lurie Three Strategies Little Fanfare or Rhetoric Endnotes Chapter 10 Evaluating the Personal Responsibility Act of 1996 with Thomas L. Gais Changes Signals New Partners "Diversion" Sanctioning Political "Detoxification" Second Order Devolution Adaptability of the Research Process Endnotes Chapter 11 Lessons from Evaluations of Employment and Training Programs The CETA Public Service Employment Program The "Complementarity" Approach Studies of Individual Impacts under CETA Endnotes Chapter 12 The Beginning of the Field Network Evaluation Methodology The Research Approach Endnotes IV. CONCLUSIONS Chapter 13 Public Policy and Policy Research: Limits and Possibilities Evaluation Research The Frontier of Applied Social Science The Demand for Policy Research Concluding Comments Endnotes Index
