DISCUSSIONS

DISCUSSION 1

"Monitoring Observed Policy Outcomes" Please respond to the following:

• Discuss the relationship between ill-structured problems and approaches to monitoring. Then, describe a real or hypothetical problem and recommend at least one effective way to monitor the policy outcomes. Support your position.

• Use at least two threats to validity and develop a rebuttal to two of the following statements: (a) The greater the cost of an alternative, the less likely it is that the alternative will be pursued. (b) The enforcement of the maximum speed limit of 55 mph increases the costs of exceeding the speed limit. (c) The mileage death rate fell from 4.3 to 3.6 deaths per 100 million miles after the implementation of the 55-mph speed limit.

DISCUSSION 2

"Monitoring through Experimentation" Please respond to the following:

• Assume you are the program chair of an employment program for students who did not graduate high school but earned a GED (Government Equivalency Degree). You have limited resources and want to determine the factors that ensure students succeed in their jobs. Explain to the program director how the "tiebreaking" experiment might allow the program to uncover that information.