Two texts in particular, by Clarke E. Cochran and his colleagues and by James
Anderson,11 provide reasons for the study of public policy. The first of these is what
Cochran calls a theoretical reason and Anderson calls a scientific reason. They argue
that one studies public policy so that one can know more about the process, both
in pursuit of knowledge for its own sake and to inform practitioners. One might
compare the pursuit of knowledge to “pure” science and the practitioner orientation
to “applied” science. The practical and applied study of public policy takes its cues
from theory, but seeks more actively to apply those theoretical insights to actual
cases of public policy formation, thereby helping theorists improve their theories. In
a course on public policy, theory may be applied to particular cases or policy areas,
as often seen in the later chapters of introductory public policy texts. As knowledge
filters from the more abstract to the more applied, insights from the theoretical world
are employed, knowingly or not, by practitioners. Conversely, students of public
policy derive theory by observing the collective activity of the practitioners of public
policy. This book considers theory more extensively in chapter 10.