This overview surveys the conceptual and practical development of the policy sciences as an independent field of academic studies. It outlines the conditions that led to the emergence of this field and its expansion over the years. In addition, the article portrays the range of substantive...

This article discusses the possibility of applying deductively based rational choice theories as analytical tools for understanding complex policy problems. It surveys the basic assumptions, axioms and rules of interpretation on which the theory is constructed and some of its important findings....