Public policy analysis in France: from public action to political power
Policy analysis leads to a strictly empirical conception of political power which conclusively associates the reality of power with the knowledge of that reality. Thereby, the meaning of the analysis of public policy and the relevance of the concepts it has developed for the knowledge of political reality are the essential questions that must be asked in France as elsewhere. This chapter aims to better understand the process of appropriation that has contributed to the full development of public policy analysis on the French academic scene, particularly from the perspective of the sociology of public action that quickly established itself as a dominant analytical approach, and to consider the social utility of policy analysis at a time when questions about how modern societies are managed have become increasingly common.