Abstract
If one wants to understand the particular problems that shape the scope of public policies, two essential features must be considered. First, for the social actors to which they concern, the concepts of policies and instruments belong to an intellectual universe, which is that of the deliberate action of social subjects pursuing aims, setting objectives and committing resources capable of producing certain results in relation to those aims and objectives. Next, with regard to the conduct of collective actions, the choices are debated, reasoned and subject to a collective justification constraint which those responsible satisfy more or less successfully. This social process involves certain representations of the collective interest and an assessment of the effectiveness to be expected of the resources likely to be used. At the heart of the definition of rationality, this issue of effectiveness is obviously critical, as no government, no administration can claim to implement ineffective policies... The party adopted for the following analysis is to take seriously these two characteristics of public policies — a universe of intentional action, a need for justification — which give meaning to the question of effectiveness as an object and issue of collective debate.