Policy, system of references and doctrine: a study of two theoretical and conceptual frameworks

The analysis of the origins of public policies has a central role in the study of public policy and facilitates the ways for understanding the actions of public authorities. Leading public policy experts on both sides of the Atlantic have focused their research on this issue and provided valuable assistance to public policy researchers and analysts around the world. The present article allows the authors to discuss the intellectual and conceptual works provided by two scholars from the English-speaking world (Shafritz and Borick) and a French researcher (Müller) and to reveal how the concepts of doctrine and system of references help us to better find out the logics of policy making. Along with similarities and differences, they have cleared the way of clarifying the public policies construction by emphasizing on cognitive and value foundations.