Abstract
Policy making is one of the most fundamental tasks of modern states. Yet the making of any policy decision is always characterized by a degree of uncertainty (Dahl 1957, p. 279). Uncertainty can refer to the effectiveness or the efficiency of the chosen policy measure for solving the underlying, often complex social problem. Likewise, uncertainty can refer to the consequences of a policy decision for policy makers’ re-election prospects. But uncertainty can also represent the key feature of the social problem that a given policy measure aims to tackle, which we refer to here as a risk issue.
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Notes
- 1.
For details on the concept of political salience, see Wlezien (2005).
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Tosun, J. (2013). Introduction. In: Risk Regulation in Europe. SpringerBriefs in Political Science, vol 3. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1984-6_1
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