Connecting Policy Learning and Policy Conflicts: A Case Study of Water Management in Colorado

ABSTRACT Disagreements and conflicts over public policy can create opportunities for people to learn about how others value and prioritize policy issues or what types of policy alternatives are feasible in the face of conflicting goals. Such learning can have feedback effects that either mitigate or enhance conflicts. Despite the logical intersections between policy conflict and learning, limited empirical attention has been paid to understanding their dynamics. To address this limitation, this paper employs the Policy Conflict Framework as a guide to analyzing learning in the context of policy conflicts. To examine the relationship between policy conflict and learning, we use interview data from policy actors involved in water management conflicts in Colorado. We find empirical evidence that the intersection between policy conflict and learning is dynamic and multifaceted. First, learning is not simply an outcome of conflict; it can be an intentional conflict mitigation strategy. Second, understanding the differences between types of learning can help inform how conflict intensity is fueled or contained. We also find that several characteristics of the policy conflict settings can support learning processes that can mitigate conflicts. These include collaborative venues with resources, trusting relationships, and influential actors, and conflict issues consequential to diverse interests. The findings inform both policy conflict and learning literature by empirically assessing the factors that enable learning in the face of policy conflict. Related Articles Butz, A. M., M. P. Fix, and J. L. Mitchell. 2015. “Policy Learning and the Diffusion of Stand‐Your‐Ground Laws.” Politics & Policy 43, no. 3: 347–377. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12116 . Anderson, D., L. A. Lawhon, J. Berggren, J. Huda, E. Koebele, and A. Kroepsch. 2017. “A Narrative Policy Framework Analysis of Wildfire Policy Discussions in Two Colorado Communities.” Politics & Policy 45, no. 4: 626–656. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12207 . Shanahan, E. A., M. K. McBeth, and P. L. Hathaway. 2011. “Narrative Policy Framework: The Influence of Media Policy Narratives on Public Opinion.” Politics & Policy 39: 373–400. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1747‐1346.2011.00295.x/abstract .