A STRUCTURAL EQUATIONS APPROACH TO POLICY EVALUATION: CASE STUDY OF MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE PROGRAMME
The implicit assumption that once formulated, policy will be implemented sits uneasy in implementation literature. The chasms that divide and necessitate the dictates of welfare policies render this assumption particularly invalid. This assumption tests the strength of public administration and bureaucratic systems that, more often than not, are severely challenged by the process of implementation. The paper borrows from social science disciplines and other fields more dependent on survey research and applies the borrowings to the policy implementation area. This study focuses on the implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (MGNREGA) and analyses the output in terms of the impact of the scheme. The study reports and analyses the results of an empirical study of 311 mid-level implementers, the Block Development Officers from Tamil Nadu, implementing the MGNREGA. It uses the Structural Equation Modelling approach to highlight paths critical to the implementation of a welfare policy.
Administrative factors, governance factors, planning, resources, and communication were assigned as predictor variables. Further, the role of accountability, power devolution, process clarity, and networks was built into the model to understand their impact on outcomes. The outcomes were the socio-economic, infrastructure, and environment impact. Statistical tests yielded the importance of planning and administrative factors on implementation outcomes. The study also suggests the importance of networks in implementation and the moderating effect of experience, domicile, and gender of the implementer.
This study is one of the first in researching the role of the implementer in the implementation of MGNREGA. This documentation will help promote the cause of implementation-evaluation, assessment, and validation of actionable interdisciplinary research as well as encourage heterodox methodologies for policy evaluation purposes.