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INVESTIGATING THE NORMATIVE ASPECTS OF PUBLIC POLICY
Author(s) -
HARMAN JOHN D.
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
law and policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.534
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1467-9930
pISSN - 0265-8240
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9930.1982.tb00270.x
Subject(s) - normative , harm , context (archaeology) , political science , public policy , politics , exposition (narrative) , sociology , work (physics) , law and economics , criminology , public administration , law , engineering , mechanical engineering , art , paleontology , literature , biology
This article challenges the idea that political philosophy must be of peripheral concern in the study of public policy through an exploration of the concept of harm and the debate over aggressive police patrol. This exploration begins with a brief discussion of the ways the concept of harm figures in the justification and administration of police work. It proceeds through an exposition of differing ways the concept of harm can be defined, the normative overtones of these varying definitions, and some of their policy ramifications with regard to police work. Finally, the way conceptual variation figures in policy debate is explored in the context of the debate over aggressive police patrol—the policy of maximizing the surveillance and criminal interception aspects of police activity as a patrol strategy.