Search activity in social agencies: institutional factors that influence policy analysis

Despite admonitions that agencies should be more deliberative in their decision procedures, there has been little inquiry regarding the extent to which social agencies actually engage in surveillance of policies and procedures pertaining to the structure and shape of agency programs, deployment of personnel, and response to the needs of clientele. In this survey, 167 executives from a cross section of social agencies in Los Angeles County were asked to describe the extent to which organizational participants engage in search activity to assess existing policies in the context of possible alternatives. Findings suggest that, while technical planning competence and orientations of executives toward planning may contribute, a number of contextual factors importantly influence the extent to which search activity is utilized; these include selected characteristics of the executive, the nature of organizational tasks, the extent to which search activity is legitimated within the organization through resource and other supports, and selected characteristics of the organization. The findings suggest that a combination of direct and indirect strategies must be utilized to promote planning in social agencies.