Premium
ON THE USE OF NARRATIVES FOR ASSESSING DEVELOPMENT POLICY
Author(s) -
HODGETT SUSAN,
DENEULIN SÉVERINE
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.313
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1467-9299
pISSN - 0033-3298
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9299.2008.01742.x
Subject(s) - narrative , presupposition , underpinning , meaning (existential) , relevance (law) , european union , sociology , order (exchange) , positive economics , political science , epistemology , economics , law , philosophy , linguistics , civil engineering , finance , engineering , economic policy
The paper discusses the extent to which narratives enrich human development policy assessment beyond statistical data. Our arguments are divided in three parts. First, after introducing the capability approach, we examine the theoretical rationale for assessing policy beyond statistics and the relevance of narratives in policy assessment. Second, we review one major exception in policy assessment, the European Union (EU) Community Infrastructure measure. The paper theorizes interpretive approaches and the use of narratives in policy assessment. It suggests that in order for the capability approach to make a significant contribution to policy research we should explore the absolute presuppositions underpinning policy‐making, and recognize that there is no intelligible distinction between quantitative and qualitative research: both acquire meaning in terms of the social plot in which they are mobilized. Consequently, we argue that future understanding of human wellbeing must be conceptualized within a meta‐theoretic framework.