Puzzling Publics: The role of reflexive learning in universal pre-kindergarten (UPK) policy formulation in Canada and the US
| DOI | 10.1177/0952076719889100 |
| Author | Linda A White,Adrienne Davidson,Heather Millar |
| Published date | 01 July 2020 |
| Date | 01 July 2020 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Puzzling Publics:
The role of reflexive
learning in universal
pre-kindergarten (UPK)
policy formulation in
Canada and the US
Heather Millar
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Adrienne Davidson
Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Linda A White
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Abstract
Building on theories of social learning and policy change, this article argues that
reflexive learning provides a causal mechanism for how public engagement in policy
formulation can trigger policy innovation. Reflexive learning is a mode of learning that
takes place during policy formulation and is most likely to occur in policy areas marked
by considerable uncertainty and complexity (low problem tractability) and the partic-
ipation of a wide range of actors (low actor certification). We contend that reflexive
learning processes can restructure policy problems and widen the menu of available
policy options and prompt policy elites and citizens to collectively update their beliefs,
resulting in policy innovation. We probe the plausibility of this mechanism of policy
change through a comparative study of universal pre-kindergarten policy making in the
US and Canada. Through two paired comparisons (Florida and California; Ontario and
Alberta), we find that policy innovation occurs when publics are engaged in policy
Corresponding author:
Heather Millar, University of Ottawa, 120 University Private, Social Sciences Building, 15th Floor, Ottawa,
Ontario, K1N 6N5, Canada.
Email: hmillar@uottawa.ca
Public Policy and Administration
2020, Vol. 35(3) 312–336
!The Author(s) 2019
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DOI: 10.1177/0952076719889100
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formulation through iterative, ongoing public consultation on policy instruments and
settings. Reflexive learning among publics and policy elites generates legitimacy, facili-
tating major policy change.
Keywords
Causal mechanisms, policy change, reflexive learning
Introduction
Early theorizing on the role of social learning in the policy process envisioned a
relationship between social learning and significant paradigmatic change (Hall,
1993). Scholars argued that external conditions can trigger a growing discontent
among mass publics as to the credibility of policy elites and the appropriateness of a
given paradigm, generating a paradigm shift through electoral change (Hall, 1989,
1993; May, 1992). Yet, the field has struggled to elucidate the mechanisms through
which the involvement of the public precipitates major policy change and in par-
ticular the degree to which social learning changes collectively held policy prefer-
ences and beliefs (Be
´land, 2006; Bennett and Howlett, 1992; Blyth, 2013; Dunlop
et al., 2018; Freeman, 2006; Sabatier, 1988; Zito and Schout, 2009; Heclo, 1974).
This article argues that how publics are engaged in processes of policy formu-
lation determines whether subnational governments are able to adopt universal
pre-kindergarten (UPK) policies in Canada and the United States (US). It pro-
poses that recent scholarship on “reflexive learning” provides a causal mechanism
for how public engagement can trigger policy innovation (Dunlop and Radaelli,
2013, 2018a, 2018b). We define policy innovation as a substantial policy change
that represents a significant departure from existing policies, programs, and
regulations within a given policy field (Boushey, 2016). Reflexive learning is a
mode of learning that takes place during policy making in policy subsystems
that demonstrate high levels of policy complexity and ambiguity (Dunlop and
Radaelli, 2017, 2018a, 2018b). When policy means and ends are underdetermined,
a broader and more diverse set of actors can become involved in policy making, as
no one singular actor is “certified” as the sole provider of knowledge (Baumgartner
and Jones, 1993; Dunlop and Radaelli, 2013; 2018a; Schattschneider, 1960).
These conditions are hypothesized to facilitate dialogue and debate among a
diverse set of actors. Reflexive learning prompts actors to collectively update
their beliefs, restructuring policy problems, and widening the menu of available
policy options. As such, reflexive learning can result in major policy change
(Dunlop and Radaelli, 2018b; Majone, 1989; Sabel and Zeitlin, 2010; Skogstad,
2017).
We propose that how the public is involved in policy formulation is crucial in
determining why processes of reflexive learning lead to policy innovation in some
Millar et al. 313
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