Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Governments are often criticized for not taking enough action to resolve policy problems. At times, blame can be put on procedural holdups, group-level lethargy, or even general incompetence. But what happens when a government has a healthy legislature and is sound, yet some debates are not entertained? Certain ideas that may be culturally unpopular or even politically taboo simply stop certain policy solutions dead in their tracks before the merits and pitfalls of said solutions are even discussed. This research uses several examples from American lawmaking to show just how perceived political taboos can cause policy inefficiencies, where “policy inefficiency” is defined as a possible policy solution that is not taken for reasons other than budgeting or feasibility. This paper also discusses how public perception affects political taboo, and whether one force pulls the other.