Development of the Policy Advocacy Behavior Scale: Initial Reliability and Validity

Abstract

Contemporary trends in social service delivery systems require human service agencies to engage in greater levels of advocacy to reform structures and protect programs that serve vulnerable populations. Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop an instrument to measure the policy advocacy behavior of nonprofit human service agencies. Method: Organizational demographic and policy advocacy behavior data were collected from 43 nonprofit human service agency executive directors. Results: The researchers determined that the Policy Advocacy Behavior Scale evidenced adequate reliability and validity. Conclusions: The Policy Advocacy Behavior Scale shows promise as a tool to inform future research on social work practice models that integrate policy advocacy methods.

Priority setting and policy advocacy by nursing associations: A scoping review and implications using a socio-ecological whole systems lens

“…Low levels of member participation partly explained limited involvement of organizations in policy issues [26,50,51,84,95]. Clearly communicating an evidence-based policy position that could be easily understood [48], providing education and tools [24,91], and strategically selecting members for key decisionmaking positions and responsibilities [27] built capacity for enhanced policy efforts by members.…”

“…These included extensive stakeholder analysis and inclusion processes [24,55,71,78]; the use of multiple types of knowledge or evidence (e.g., scientific, lay, and critical) [23,55]; navigation through various stages of the policy change cycle [23,26,55,78]; deployment of efforts in various settings (e.g., forums, courts, arenas) [23,55,71]; and use of direct (e.g., providing testimony for bills or meeting with politicians) and indirect tactics (e.g., newspaper editorial submissions or public awareness campaigns) [23,24,26,55,63,71,78]. Common among the frameworks was the need for multiple approaches and multiple targets.…”

“…Policy advocacy was conceptualized as strategies taken to initiate, enact, and enforce structural and policy change(s) to benefit populations [24,61,63,71]. Policy advocacy approaches comprised a combination of independent and 'collective', 'intersectoral', or 'cross-sector' approaches to solving complex and multicasual public policy issues [23,24,55,78].…”

“…Six frameworks [23,55,61,63,76,78] and one tool [24] developed from theoretical, empirical, and practice evidence depicted public policy advocacy work by non-nursing NGOs and NPOs. Policy advocacy was conceptualized as strategies taken to initiate, enact, and enforce structural and policy change(s) to benefit populations [24,61,63,71].…”

“…NGO's and NPO's in this review included corporate bodies that existed to further the interests of a community or population and that addressed public policy issues. 5 Priority setting was defined as a process by which organizations determine what policy issue should be given precedence or special attention and included decisions about the allocation or rationing of human, financial, or material resources in order to meet organizational goals [21,22] Policy advocacy was defined as action taken to influence structural and system-level decisions that further the interests of the public [23][24][25].…”