The Universal and the Particular in Policy Analysis and Training

How well do the craft skills of policy analysis travel? The basic skills of assessing problems and structuring comparisons of policy alternatives in terms of relevant goals seem universal. However, the specific political, social, and economic contexts in which analysts work help determine the set of feasible alternatives and appropriate tradeoffs among goals. Further, the consequences of analysts' responses to conflicts between analytical integrity and other professional values may differ greatly across regimes, suggesting the importance of the particular in thinking about practical professional ethics.