The Policy Brief1
Overview
The policy brief is a document which outlines the rationale for choosing a
particular policy alternative or course of action in a current policy debate. It is
commonly produced in response to a request directly from a decision-maker or within
an organisation that intends to advocate for the position detailed in the brief.
Depending on the role of the writer or organisation producing the document, the brief
may only provide a targeted discussion of the current alternatives without arguing for
a particular one (i.e. those who adopt the role of ‘objective’ researcher). On the other
end of the scale, i.e. advocates, the brief may focus directly on providing an
argument for the adoption of a particular alternative. Nevertheless for any case, as
any policy debate is a market-place of competing ideas, the purpose of the policy
brief is to convince the target audience of the urgency of the current problem
and the need to adopt the preferred alternative or course of action outlined and
therefore, serve as an impetus for action.
As with all good marketing tools, the key to success is targeting the particular
audience for your message. The most common audience for a policy brief is the
decision-maker but, it is also not unusual to use the document to support broader
advocacy initiatives targeting a wide but knowledgeable audience (e.g. decision
makers, journalists, diplomats, administrators, researchers). In constructing a policy
brief that can effectively serve its intended purpose, it is common for a brief to be:
Focused – all aspects of the policy brief (from the message to the layout) need to
strategically focused on achieving the intended goal of convincing the target
audience. For example, the argument provided must build on what they do know
about the problem, provide insight about what they don’t know about the problem
and be presented in language that reflects their values, i.e. using ideas, evidence
and language that will convince them.
Professional, not academic –The common audience for a policy brief is not
interested in the research/analysis procedures conducted to produce the
evidence, but are very interested to know the writer’s perspective on the problem
and potential solutions based on the new evidence.
Evidence-based – The policy brief is a communication tool produced by policy
analysts and therefore all potential audiences not only expect a rational argument
but will only be convinced by argumentation supported by evidence that the
problem exists and the consequences of adopting particular alternatives.
Limited – to provide a adequately comprehensive but targeted argument within a
limited space, the focus of the brief needs to be limited to a particular problem or
area of a problem.
Succinct – The type of audiences targeted commonly do not have the time or
inclination to read an in-depth 20 page argument on a policy problem. Therefore,
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This description of the policy brief was developed by Eoin Young and Lisa Quinn as LGI training
materials and based on the analysis of samples and from a number of guidelines such as:
David Dickson. Guidelines for SciDev.Net Opinion articles. Available on the World Wide Web.
URL:http://www.scidev.net/ms/entebbe/index.cfm?pageid=134 [29 Feb. 2004].
Hong Kong University. Guidelines for Writing a Policy Brief. Available on the World Wide Web.
URL: http://www.hku.hk/psychodp/P2/PSYC0036B/Tut1note.doc [29 Feb. 2004].
Richards. The policy options brief. Available on the World Wide Web. URL:
http://www.gse.buffalo.edu/Fas/Jacobson/629/webnotes/policy_brief.htm [29 Feb. 2004].
Prof. Tsai. Guidelines for Writing a Policy Brief. Available on the World Wide Web. URL:
http://jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu/~ktsai/policybrief.html [29 Feb. 2004].
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it is common that policy briefs do not exceed 6 – 8 pages in length (i.e. usually
not longer than 3,000 words).
Understandable – This not only refers to using clear and simple language (i.e.
not the jargon and concepts of an academic discipline) but also to providing a
well explained and easy to follow argument targeting a wide but knowledgeable
audience.
Accessible – the writer of the policy brief should facilitate the ease of use of the
document by the target audience and therefore, should subdivide the text using
clear descriptive titles to guide the reader.
Promotional – the policy brief should catch the eye of the potential audience in
order to create a favourable impression (e.g. professional, innovative etc) In this
way many brief writers many of the features of the promotional leaflet (use of
colour, use of logos, photographs, slogans, illustrative quotes etc).
Practical and feasible – the policy brief is an action-oriented tool targeting policy
practitioners. As such the brief must provide arguments based on what is actually
happening in practice with a particular policy and propose recommendations
which seem realistic to the target audience
The policy brief is usually said to be the most common and effective written
communication tool in a policy campaign. However, in balancing all of the criteria
above, many analysts also find the brief the most difficult policy tool to write.
Common Structural Elements of a Policy Brief
As discussed above, policy briefs directly reflect the different roles that the policy
analyst commonly plays, i.e. from researcher to advocate. The type of brief that we
are focusing on is one from the more action-oriented, advocacy end of the
continuum. Although there is much variation even at this end of the scale, the most
common elements of the policy brief are as follows:
Title of the paper
Executive summary
Context and importance of the problem
Critique of policy option(s)
Policy recommendations
Appendices
Sources consulted or recommended
More specifically,
Title of the paper
The title aims to catch the attention of the reader and compel him/her to read on and
so needs to be descriptive, punchy and relevant.
Executive summary
The executive summary aims to convince the reader further that the brief is worth indepth
investigation. It is especially important for an audience that is short of time to
clearly see the relevance and importance of the brief in reading the summary. As
such, a 1 to 2 paragraph executive summary commonly includes:
- A description of the problem addressed;
- A statement on why the current approach/policy option needs to be
changed;
- Your recommendations for action.
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Context and importance of the problem
The purpose of this element of the brief is to convince the target audience that a
current and urgent problem exists which requires them to take action. The context
and importance of the problem is both the introductory and first building block of the
brief. As such, it usually includes the following:
- A clear statement of the problem or issue in focus.
- A short overview of the root causes of the problem
- A clear statement of the policy implications of the problem which clearly
establishes the current importance and policy relevance of the issue.
It is worth noting that the length of the problem description may vary considerably
from brief to brief depending on the stage on the policy process in focus, e.g. there
may be a need to have a much more extensive problem description for policy at the
evaluation stage than for one at the option choosing stage.
Critique of policy option(s)
The aim of this element is to detail shortcomings of the current approach or options
being implemented and therefore, illustrate both the need for change and focus of
where change needs to occur. In doing so, the critique of policy options usually
includes the following:
- A short overview of the policy option(s) in focus
- An argument illustrating why and how the current or proposed approach
is failing.
It is important for the sake of credibility to recognise all opinions in the debate of the
issue.
Policy recommendations
The aim of the policy recommendations element is to provide a detailed and
convincing proposal of how the failings of the current policy approach need to
changed. As such this is achieved by including;
- A breakdown of the specific practical steps or measures that need to be
implemented
- Sometimes also includes a closing paragraph re-emphasising the
importance of action.
Appendices
Although the brief is a short and targeted document, authors sometimes decide that
their argument needs further support and so include an appendix. Appendices
should be included only when absolutely necessary.
Sources consulted or recommended
Many writers of the policy brief decide not to include any sourcing of their evidence
as their focus is not on an academic audience. However, if you decide to include a
short bibliography then place it at the end. Many writers prefer to lead their readers to
further reading and so, include a recommended readings section. Not surprisingly,
many of the recommended readings are other related policy documents produced by
their organisations!
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