Between colliding worlds : the ambiguous existence of government agencies for aboriginal and women's policy / Jonathan Malloy.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Relying heavily on interviews with public servants and external activists, Malloy argues convincingly that special policy agencies, despite - or because of - their ambiguous relationship to different communities, make critical contributions to governance.

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CHOICE Review

Malloy presents an interesting and innovative study about the making of public policy for aboriginal and women's groups in Australia and Canada. The author, a young political scientist, examines the relationship between activists and governments in these two jurisdictions by noting that the policy units involved with these groups straddle the boundary between the world of public servants and the social movements involved. He labels these units "special policy agencies" and indicates that they have a dual role: representing the movements to government while managing relations on behalf of their own governments with them. He suggests that they are therefore in a permanently ambiguous position. Malloy continues by proposing that analysts of public policy recognize the unique nature of these special agencies and regard them as an effective means of managing social movements of the kind that women and aboriginal groups represent. As such, these agencies could be forerunners because their ambiguous circumstances may well characterize the circumstances of stakeholders in other areas, illustrating ways that government can manage relationships with other comparable social groups in an effective way. This volume will be of interest to policy makers, public policy analysts, and students of comparative politics. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Graduate collections and above. P. Regenstreif University of Rochester