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160 Good Argumentative Essay Topics for Students in 2024

April 3, 2024

The skill of writing an excellent argumentative essay is a crucial one for every high school or college student to master. In sum, argumentative essays teach students how to organize their thoughts logically and present them in a convincing way. This skill is helpful not only for those pursuing degrees in law , international relations , or public policy , but for any student who wishes to develop their critical thinking faculties. In this article, we’ll cover what makes a good argument essay and offer several argumentative essay topics for high school and college students. Let’s begin!

What is an Argumentative Essay?

An argumentative essay is an essay that uses research to present a reasoned argument on a particular subject . As with the persuasive essay , the purpose of an argumentative essay is to sway the reader to the writer’s position. However, a strong persuasive essay makes its point through diligent research and emotion while a strong argumentative essay should be based solely on facts, not feelings.

Moreover, each fact should be supported by clear evidence from credible sources . Furthermore, a good argumentative essay will have an easy-to-follow structure. When organizing your argumentative essay, use this format as a guide:

• Introduction
• Supporting body paragraphs
• Paragraph(s) addressing common counterarguments

Argumentative Essay Format

In the introduction , the writer presents their position and thesis statement —a sentence that summarizes the paper’s main points. The body paragraphs then draw upon supporting evidence to back up this initial statement, with each paragraph focusing on its own point. The length of your paper will determine the amount of examples you need. In general, you’ll likely need at least two to three. Additionally, your examples should be as detailed as possible, citing specific research, case studies, statistics, or anecdotes.

In the counterargument paragraph , the writer acknowledges and refutes opposing viewpoints. Finally, in the conclusion , the writer restates the main argument made in the thesis statement and summarizes the points of the essay. Additionally, the conclusion may offer a final proposal to persuade the reader of the essay’s position.

How to Write an Effective Argumentative Essay, Step by Step

• Choose your topic. Use the list below to help you pick a topic. Ideally, a good argumentative essay topic will be meaningful to you—writing is always stronger when you are interested in the subject matter. In addition, the topic should be complex with plenty of “pro” and “con” arguments. Avoid choosing a topic that is either widely accepted as fact or too narrow. For example, “Is the earth round?” would not be a solid choice.
• Research. Use the library, the web, and any other resources to gather information about your argumentative essay topic. Research widely but smartly. As you go, take organized notes, marking the source of every quote and where it may fit in the scheme of your larger essay. Moreover, remember to look for (and research) possible counterarguments.
• Outline . Using the argument essay format above, create an outline for your essay. Then, brainstorm a thesis statement covering your argument’s main points, and begin to put your examples in order, focusing on logical flow. It’s often best to place your strongest example last.
• Write . Draw on your research and outline to create a first draft. Remember, your first draft doesn’t need to be perfect. (As Voltaire says, “Perfect is the enemy of good.”) Accordingly, just focus on getting the words down on paper.
• Does my thesis statement need to be adjusted?
• Which examples feel strongest? Weakest?
• Do the transitions flow smoothly?
• Do I have a strong opening paragraph?
• Does the conclusion reinforce my argument?

Tips for Revising an Argument Essay

Evaluating your own work can be difficult, so you might consider the following strategies:

• Read your work aloud to yourself.
• Record yourself reading your paper, and listen to the recording.
• Reverse outline your paper. Firstly, next to each paragraph, write a short summary of that paragraph’s main points/idea. Then, read through your reverse outline. Does it have a logical flow? If not, where should you adjust?
• Print out your paper and cut it into paragraphs. What happens when you rearrange the paragraphs?

Good Argumentative Essay Topics for Middle School, High School, and College Students

Family argumentative essay topics.

• Should the government provide financial incentives for families to have children to address the declining birth rate?
• Should we require parents to provide their children with a certain level of nutrition and physical activity to prevent childhood obesity?
• Should parents implement limits on how much time their children spend playing video games?
• Should cell phones be banned from family/holiday gatherings?
• Should we hold parents legally responsible for their children’s actions?
• Should children have the right to sue their parents for neglect?
• Should parents have the right to choose their child’s religion?
• Are spanking and other forms of physical punishment an effective method of discipline?
• Should courts allow children to choose where they live in cases of divorce?
• Should parents have the right to monitor teens’ activity on social media?
• Should parents control their child’s medical treatment, even if it goes against the child’s wishes?
• Should parents be allowed to post pictures of their children on social media without their consent?
• Should fathers have a legal say in whether their partners do or do not receive an abortion?
• Can television have positive developmental benefits on children?
• Should the driving age be raised to prevent teen car accidents?
• Should adult children be legally required to care for their aging parents?

Education Argument Essay Topics

• Should schools ban the use of technology like ChatGPT?
• Are zoos unethical, or necessary for conservation and education?
• To what degree should we hold parents responsible in the event of a school shooting?
• Should schools offer students a set number of mental health days?
• Should school science curriculums offer a course on combating climate change?
• Should public libraries be allowed to ban certain books? If so, what types?
• What role, if any, should prayer play in public schools?
• Should schools push to abolish homework?
• Are gifted and talented programs in schools more harmful than beneficial due to their exclusionary nature?
• Should universities do away with Greek life?
• Should schools remove artwork, such as murals, that some perceive as offensive?
• Should the government grant parents the right to choose alternative education options for their children and use taxpayer funds to support these options?
• Is homeschooling better than traditional schooling for children’s academic and social development?
• Should we require schools to teach sex education to reduce teen pregnancy rates?
• Should we require schools to provide sex education that includes information about both homosexual and heterosexual relationships?
• Should colleges use affirmative action and other race-conscious policies to address diversity on campus?
• Should public schools remove the line “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance?
• Should college admissions officers be allowed to look at students’ social media accounts?
• Should schools abolish their dress codes, many of which unfairly target girls, LGBTQ students, and students of color?
• Should schools be required to stock free period products in bathrooms?
• Should legacy students receive preferential treatment during the college admissions process?
• Are school “voluntourism” trips ethical?

Government Argumentative Essay Topics

• Should the U.S. decriminalize prostitution?
• Should the U.S. issue migration visas to all eligible applicants?
• Should the federal government cancel all student loan debt?
• Should we lower the minimum voting age? If so, to what?
• Should the federal government abolish all laws penalizing drug production and use?
• Should the U.S. use its military power to deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan?
• Should the U.S. supply Ukraine with further military intelligence and supplies?
• Should the North and South of the U.S. split up into two regions?
• Should Americans hold up nationalism as a critical value?
• Should we permit Supreme Court justices to hold their positions indefinitely?
• Should Supreme Court justices be democratically elected?
• Is the Electoral College still a productive approach to electing the U.S. president?
• Should the U.S. implement a national firearm registry?
• Is it ethical for countries like China and Israel to mandate compulsory military service for all citizens?
• Should the U.S. government implement a ranked-choice voting system?
• Should institutions that benefited from slavery be required to provide reparations?
• Based on the 1619 project, should history classes change how they teach about the founding of the U.S.?
• Should term limits be imposed on Senators and Representatives? If so, how long?
• Should women be allowed into special forces units?
• Should the federal government implement stronger, universal firearm licensing laws?
• Do public sex offender registries help prevent future sex crimes?
• Should the government be allowed to regulate family size?
• Should all adults legally be considered mandated reporters?
• Should the government fund public universities to make higher education more accessible to low-income students?
• Should the government fund universal preschool to improve children’s readiness for kindergarten?

Health/Bioethics Argumentative Essay Topics

• Should the U.S. government offer its own healthcare plan?
• In the case of highly infectious pandemics, should we focus on individual freedoms or public safety when implementing policies to control the spread?
• Should we legally require parents to vaccinate their children to protect public health?
• Is it ethical for parents to use genetic engineering to create “designer babies” with specific physical and intellectual traits?
• Should the government fund research on embryonic stem cells for medical treatments?
• Should the government legalize assisted suicide for terminally ill patients?
• Should organ donation be mandatory?
• Is cloning animals ethical?
• Should cancer screenings start earlier? If so, what age?
• Is surrogacy ethical?
• Should birth control require a prescription?
• Should minors have access to emergency contraception?
• Should hospitals be for-profit or nonprofit institutions?

Good Argumentative Essay Topics — Continued

Social media argumentative essay topics.

• Should the federal government increase its efforts to minimize the negative impact of social media?
• Do social media and smartphones strengthen one’s relationships?
• Should antitrust regulators take action to limit the size of big tech companies?
• Should social media platforms ban political advertisements?
• Should the federal government hold social media companies accountable for instances of hate speech discovered on their platforms?
• Do apps such as TikTok and Instagram ultimately worsen the mental well-being of teenagers?
• Should governments oversee how social media platforms manage their users’ data?
• Should social media platforms like Facebook enforce a minimum age requirement for users?
• Should social media companies be held responsible for cases of cyberbullying?
• Should the United States ban TikTok?
• Is social media harmful to children?
• Should employers screen applicants’ social media accounts during the hiring process?

Religion Argument Essay Topics

• Should religious institutions be tax-exempt?
• Should religious symbols such as the hijab or crucifix be allowed in public spaces?
• Should religious freedoms be protected, even when they conflict with secular laws?
• Should the government regulate religious practices?
• Should we allow churches to engage in political activities?
• Religion: a force for good or evil in the world?
• Should the government provide funding for religious schools?
• Is it ethical for healthcare providers to deny abortions based on religious beliefs?
• Should religious organizations be allowed to discriminate in their hiring practices?
• Should we allow people to opt out of medical treatments based on their religious beliefs?
• Should the U.S. government hold religious organizations accountable for cases of sexual abuse within their community?
• Should religious beliefs be exempt from anti-discrimination laws?
• Should religious individuals be allowed to refuse services to others based on their beliefs or lifestyles? (As in this famous case .)
• Should the US ban religion-based federal holidays?
• Should public schools be allowed to teach children about religious holidays?

Science Argument Essay Topics

• Would the world be safer if we eliminated nuclear weapons?
• Should scientists bring back extinct animals? If so, which ones?
• Should we hold companies fiscally responsible for their carbon footprint?
• Should we ban pesticides in favor of organic farming methods?
• Should the federal government ban all fossil fuels, despite the potential economic impact on specific industries and communities?
• What renewable energy source should the U.S. invest more money in?
• Should the FDA outlaw GMOs?
• Should we worry about artificial intelligence surpassing human intelligence?
• Should the alternative medicine industry be more stringently regulated?
• Is colonizing Mars a viable option?
• Is the animal testing worth the potential to save human lives?

Sports Argument Essay Topics

• Should colleges compensate student-athletes?
• How should sports teams and leagues address the gender pay gap?
• Should youth sports teams do away with scorekeeping?
• Should we ban aggressive contact sports like boxing and MMA?
• Should professional sports associations mandate that athletes stand during the national anthem?
• Should high schools require their student-athletes to maintain a certain GPA?
• Should transgender athletes compete in sports according to their gender identity?
• Should schools ban football due to the inherent danger it poses to players?
• Should performance-enhancing drugs be allowed in sports?
• Do participation trophies foster entitlement and unrealistic expectations?
• Should sports teams be divided by gender?
• Should professional athletes be allowed to compete in the Olympics?
• Should women be allowed on NFL teams?

Technology Argumentative Essay Topics

• Should sites like DALL-E compensate the artists whose work it was trained on?
• Should the federal government make human exploration of space a more significant priority?
• Is it ethical for the government to use surveillance technology to monitor citizens?
• Should websites require proof of age from their users? If so, what age?
• Should we consider A.I.-generated images and text pieces of art?
• Does the use of facial recognition technology violate individuals’ privacy?
• Is online learning as effective as in-person learning?
• Does computing harm the environment?
• Should buying, sharing, and selling collected personal data be illegal?
• Are electric cars really better for the environment?
• Should car companies be held responsible for self-driving car accidents?
• Should private jets be banned?
• Do violent video games contribute to real-life violence?

Business Argument Essay Topics

• Should the U.S. government phase out the use of paper money in favor of a fully digital currency system?
• Should the federal government abolish its patent and copyright laws?
• Should we replace the Federal Reserve with free-market institutions?
• Is free-market ideology responsible for the U.S. economy’s poor performance over the past decade?
• Will cryptocurrencies overtake natural resources like gold and silver?
• Is capitalism the best economic system? What system would be better?
• Should the U.S. government enact a universal basic income?
• Should we require companies to provide paid parental leave to their employees?
• Should the government raise the minimum wage? If so, to what?
• Should antitrust regulators break up large companies to promote competition?
• Is it ethical for companies to prioritize profits over social responsibility?
• Should gig-economy workers like Uber and Lyft drivers be considered employees or independent contractors?
• Should the federal government regulate the gig economy to ensure fair treatment of workers?
• Should the government require companies to disclose the environmental impact of their products?
• Should companies be allowed to fire employees based on political views or activities?
• Should tipping practices be phased out?
• Should employees who choose not to have children be given the same amount of paid leave as parents?
• Should MLMs (multi-level marketing companies) be illegal?
• Should employers be allowed to factor tattoos and personal appearance into hiring decisions?

In Conclusion – Argument Essay Topics

Using the tips above, you can effectively structure and pen a compelling argumentative essay that will wow your instructor and classmates. Remember to craft a thesis statement that offers readers a roadmap through your essay, draw on your sources wisely to back up any claims, and read through your paper several times before it’s due to catch any last-minute proofreading errors. With time, diligence, and patience, your essay will be the most outstanding assignment you’ve ever turned in…until the next one rolls around.

Looking for more fresh and engaging topics for use in the classroom? You might consider checking out the following:

• 125 Good Debate Topics for High School Students
• 150 Good Persuasive Speech Topics
• 7 Best Places to Study
• Guide to the IB Extended Essay
• How to Write the AP Lang Rhetorical Analysis Essay
• AP Lit Reading List
• How to Write the AP Lang Synthesis Essay
• 49 Most Interesting Biology Research Topics
• High School Success

Lauren Green

With a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from Columbia University and an MFA in Fiction from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas at Austin, Lauren has been a professional writer for over a decade. She is the author of the chapbook  A Great Dark House  (Poetry Society of America, 2023) and a forthcoming novel (Viking/Penguin).

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Top 20: Public Policy Topics

This list comprises, in no particular order, the topics on the mind of faculty, staff, and students as we finish up 2019 and head into a new decade and the 2020 elections. Many experts at Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy experts weighed in on these topics this year. 

Michigan leaders worried about possible effects of next recession “While no one knows when the next recession will hit or how bad it will be, the economic growth clock is ticking.” – Thomas Ivacko, associate director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Stevenson debunks five myths about the Fed in Washington Post “When we look at the data, we are not seeing how inflation and unemployment move in response to market forces; instead, we are seeing the Fed actively trying to keep inflation near its 2 percent target. So the relationship now reflects the Fed either undershooting or overshooting its rate.”  – Betsey Stevenson, professor of public policy; professor of economics

10% Happier: Stevenson and Wolfers talk wealth inequality and redistribution on NewsHour

“Rich people are happier than poor people, and that’s true all the way along economic distribution.” – Justin Wolfers, professor of public policy; professor of economics

“Increases in income keep making you happier, but they’re making you happier at a decreasing rate.” – Betsey Stevenson, professor of public policy; professor of economics

Wolfers’ take on Trump’s tariffs “The United States is still less protectionist than it has been throughout most of its history or than most nations are today.” – Justin Wolfers, professor of public policy; professor of economics

Environment

Democratic presidential candidates’ climate change proposals may be unrealistic, says Rabe “What this would look like, and how this would work, probably hasn’t been talked about at the dinner table in most communities. What we don’t know is whether the nominee will stay the course and keep the plan, or hedge and dial back.” – Barry Rabe, Ira and Nicki Harris Family Professor of Public Policy; Arthur F. Thurnau Professor; professor of environmental policy; professor of political science; professor of the environment

Utilities have little financial incentive to plug methane leaks “The overwhelming lesson we’ve taken from doing this research is that the price regulations we’ve relied on in the natural gas distribution sector are out of date, given our current understanding of methane’s role in climate change.” – Catherine Hausman, assistant professor of public policy

Alternative Energy

Sarah Mills work featured on This is Michigan “Wind turbines fit better in some communities than others. It depends on what their development goals are.” – Sarah Mills, senior project manager at the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Artificial Intelligence

Parthasarathy talks algorithms place in the criminal justice system “Technology is not neutral. Even when we think about how data is collected and stored and how we measure things, even that in and of itself has a bias.” – Shobita Parthasarathy, professor and director of the Science, Technology and Public Policy Program

Cyberattacks

Cyberattacks are major risk in elections, warns Ford School PhD “Malware seeks to steal, block or alter data. It’s the kind of code used to steal your passwords or credit card numbers. And it can also steal your vote.” – Ford School doctoral student Nadiya Kostyuk and Kenneth Geers, senior fellow with the Atlantic Council

Driverless Vehicles

Ford’s Robert Hampshire forecasts the future of autonomous vehicles Given the approximation that “autonomous vehicles averaged one disengagement [emergency scenario] every 5,000 miles…you’d need around 50,000 to 100,000 employees, distributed city by city. A network like that could operate as a subscription service, or it could be a government entity, similar to today’s air traffic control system.” – Robert Hampshire, associate professor of public policy and a research associate professor in both the U-M Transportation Research Institute’s (UMTRI) Human Factors group and Michigan Institute for Data Science (MIDAS)

Current Political Environment

Axelrod talks “don’t fall into the zero-sum trap” and other lessons on podcast “The biggest lesson for me is don’t fall into the zero-sum trap. Whenever we think of things as a rivalry or a competition, we tend to immediately fall into the simple-minded thinking that it’s a zero-sum game…it’s usually opportunities that are mutually advantageous that are overlooked if you take that approach.” – Robert Axelrod, member of the National Academy of Sciences and former MacArthur Prize Fellow,  Walgreen Professor for the Study of Human Understanding at the University of Michigan. Axelrod has appointments in the Department of Political Science and the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.

National Debt

Lowering national debt is as easy as 1, 2, $4.95 billion! “The longer we wait to do so, the more burden the current generation will have to take on compared to the baby boomer generation.” – Tyler Evilsizer, Deputy Policy Director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) and guest speaker at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

Immigration

Withdrawing from the Flores Agreement could keep immigration lawyers in dark, Vieux says “We’re going to see a lot more people detained for longer periods of time in facilities that are not licensed, and significant physical- and mental-health ramifications for the children that we serve.” – Hardy Vieux (MPP/JD ’97), Towsley Policymaker in Residence at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and vice president, legal at Human Rights First

Health Care

Iovan and Lantz discuss their latest research on super-utilizers “There are two major reasons behind the drive to reduce emergency care use. First, the emergency department is not the best place to receive primary care. Super-utilizers use the ED for a number of reasons other than having a medical emergency.” – Paula Lantz, associate dean for Academic Affairs; professor of Public Policy, James B. Hudak Professor of Health Policy

“Many studies of super-utilizers find that health care use and costs go down the year after the intervention. However, a big problem is that we see this even without an intervention. This is in part because the people in the ‘super-utilizer’ group change somewhat from year to year.”- Samantha Iovan, staff at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

“We really want to stress the importance of conducting more high-quality evaluation research in this area. These patients certainly have many medical and social needs that have to be addressed, but the current research literature does not provide the evidence to support claims that super-utilizer interventions that are spreading across health care systems are actual working.” – Mahshid Abir, Department of Emergency Medicine at U-M Medical School

Shaefer warns of Medicaid work requirement risks “This should include the highest-quality experimental or quasi-experimental testing of employment, health outcomes and economic impact. Doing so would set Michigan apart in its commitment to really understanding the full impact of work requirements.” – H. Luke Shaefer, PhD, director of Poverty Solutions at U-M, and associate professor at the University of Michigan, School of Social Work, and Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and Marianne Udow-Phillips, executive director of the Center for Health and Research Transformation

Ivacko discusses opioid interventions on Michigan Radio “If they don’t have someone to turn to or a helping hand in these difficult times, it’s just that much harder for them to try to take a step forward.” – Thomas Ivacko, associate director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Levitsky warns of consequences from marijuana legalization in Michigan “Keeping marijuana products away from vulnerable youth will require more vigilance and state and local intervention than when marijuana was banned.” – Melvyn Levitsky, professor of international policy and practice at the Ford School, and Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM)

Ivacko makes sense of the recreational marijuana ‘haze’ If a chief of police or county sheriff feels it’s important to follow federal law, and a county administrator or a city mayor feels it’s important to follow state law, well, that’s a tough place to be for public officials. And so, opting out, you know, is a way to avoid those kinds of challenges.” – Thomas Ivacko, associate director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

National Security

Ali proposes a commission to fight domestic terror “Our country still faces the possibility of additional attacks that will raise the same questions about why the government is not doing more to stop the violence.” – Javed Ali, a Towsley Policymaker in Residence at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and Josh Kirshner, former special assistant to the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security

Scott Atran et al look at cognitive triggers for extremist violence through brain scans “In this new effort, we sought to learn more about what goes on in the minds of people who have expressed a willingness to die for a cause that is based on sacred values—in this case, sympathizers of an Al-Qaeda associate called Lashkar-et Taiba.” – Scott Atran, adjunct research professor

Pilkauskas finds Earned Income Tax Credit helps low-income moms live on their own “The rule of thumb is that it is generally good to pay less than 30% of your income in rent—but in our study, half of mothers paid more than 50% of their earnings on rent. Increasing the EITC by $1,000 reduced severe housing cost burdens by 5 percentage points.” – Natasha Pilkaukas, assistant professor of public policy

Poverty Solutions & CLOSUP new report find local officials believe many Michigan residents struggle to make ends meet “Economic recovery across Michigan in the wake of the Great Recession has been uneven.  Despite a very low unemployment rate, this survey finds poverty and economic hardship are widespread and common challenges exist in all kinds of communities.” – Tom Ivacko, associate director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy

Natasha Pilkaukas’ research on three-generation household receives Michigan Minds spotlight “I’m really interested in thinking about what we can do to help children thrive. Who is in the household matters for kids.” – Natasha Pilkaukas, assistant professor of public policy

Higher Education

Dynarski’s work on school day SAT testing cited in Inside Higher Ed analysis of the 2019 test results “Universal testing alone will not get disadvantaged students into college. But it produces small, discernible increases in college attendance, especially at four-year colleges.” – Susan Dynarski, a professor of public policy, education and economics

Seefeldt offers insight on student debt trends on Michigan Radio “So while [these students] may be qualifying for financial aid, financial aid has not kept pace with rising college costs. So you have students who have more need, but the types of grants and aid we can give them is just not there.” – Kristin Seefeldt, professor of public policy and social work

Jason Owen-Smith warns of “serious risks” when universities cater to an industry “I think a narrow focus that closely aligns university work with near-term business needs is perilous.” – Jason Owen-Smith, professor of sociology and public policy

Alternative Transportation

Hampshire receives National Science Foundation Convergence Accelerator grant Robert Hampshire, associate professor of public policy at the Ford School and associate research professor at Michigan Institute for Data Science (MIDAS), was awarded a $948,182 grant by the National Science Foundation’s Convergence Accelerator (C-Accel) to study how all Americans’ quality of life and economic prosperity can be improved by recent transportation innovations like ridesourcing and driverless vehicles.

K-12 Education

More harm than good? Professor Brian Jacob criticizes the continued turnover of accountability systems for Michigan schools I think we need more stability in the political and policy environment…to allow the people on the ground to focus on the actual work at hand.” – Brian Jacob, Walter H. Annenberg Professor of Education Policy; professor of public policy; professor of economics; professor of education

Infrastructure

Leiser and Mills contribute to resources for new Michigan Lead and Copper Rule “As part of a project led by the University of Michigan’s Water Center and funded by the C.S. Mott Foundation, we have explored some of the challenges associated with financing LSL replacement under the revised Lead and Copper Rule.” – Sarah Mills, senior project manager at the Ford School’s Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy (CLOSUP) and Stephanie Leiser, lecturer at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

Who makes the call? Thacher and Gillooly advocate for 911 operator training “There is a lot of ambiguity on the part of callers, and it would rarely be appropriate to criminally punish them, because there are just so many judgment calls.” – David Thacher, associate professor of public policy and urban planning

“Operators need agency support to train them on how to handle such callers, and protocols about when calls can be appropriately rejected so as to reduce operators’ liability.” – Jessica Gillooly, PhD student

Voter Turnout and Election Reform

Yusuf Neggers discusses latest research with VoxDev “We might think that these information constraints are particularly important in rural areas where you have lower literacy rates and probably lower penetration from radio, television, newspapers, that might otherwise provide information.” – Yusuf Neggers, an assistant professor of public policy

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Debate Topics

Need to write an argumentative essay? Preparing for an upcoming debate? ProCon.org has over 100 topics complete with pro and con arguments, quotes and statistics from experts, historical information, and other pertinent research.

Abortion – Should abortion be legal?

Alternative Energy – Can alternative energy effectively replace fossil fuels?

American Socialism – Should the U.S. become socialist?

Animal Dissection – Should K-12 students dissect animals in science classrooms?

Animal Testing – Should animals be used for scientific or commercial testing?

Artificial Intelligence – Is artificial intelligence good for society?

Banned Books – Should parents or other adults be able to ban books from schools and libraries?

Binge-Watching – Is binge-watching good for you?

Cancel Culture – Is cancel culture (or callout culture) good for society?

CBD for Pets – Is CBD good for pets?

Cell Phone Radiation – Is cell phone radiation safe?

Cheerleading – Is cheerleading a sport?

Churches & Taxes – Should churches (including mosques, synagogues, etc.) remain tax-exempt?

College Education – Is a college education worth it?

Congressional Term Limits  – Should term limits be imposed on U.S. Senators and Representatives?

Constitutional Carry of Handguns – Should permitless, “constitutional carry” of guns be legal?

Corporal Punishment – Should corporal punishment be used in K-12 schools?

Corporate Tax Rate – Should the federal corporate income tax rate be raised?

Cuba Embargo – Should the United States maintain its embargo against Cuba?

DACA & Dreamers – Are DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and the DREAM Act good for America?

Daylight Saving Time – Should the United States keep daylight saving time?

DC AND Puerto Rico Statehood – Should Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico be granted U.S. statehood?

Death Penalty – Should the death penalty be legal?

Defund the Police – Should police departments be defunded, if not abolished?

Dress Codes – Should dress codes be implemented and enforced?

Drinking Age – Should the drinking age be lowered from 21 to a younger age?

Drone Strikes – Should the United States continue its use of drone strikes abroad?

Drug Use in Sports – Should performance-enhancing drugs be accepted in sports?

Election Day National Holiday – Should the election day be made a national holiday?

Electoral College – Should the United States use the electoral college in presidential elections?

Employer Vaccine Mandates – Should employers be able to mandate vaccinations?

Felon Voting – Should people who have completed felony sentences be allowed to vote?

Fighting in Hockey – Should fighting be allowed in hockey?

Filibuster – Should the U.S. Senate keep the filibuster?

Fracking – Should the United States continue fracking

Free College – Should public college be tuition-free?

Fur Clothing Bans – Should fur clothing be banned?

GMOS – Should genetically modified organisms (GMOs) be grown?

Gold Standard – Should the United States return to a gold standard?

Golf – Is golf a sport and are golfers athletes?

Gun Control – Should more gun control laws be enacted?

Historic Statue Removal – Should historic statues be taken down?

Homework – Is homework beneficial?

Illegal Immigration – Should the U.S. government provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants?

Internet – Is the internet “making us stupid?”

Kneeling during the National Anthem – Is kneeling during the national anthem an appropriate form of protest?

Mandatory National Service – Should the United States have mandatory national service?

Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) – Should medical aid in dying be legal?

Medical Marijuana – Should medical marijuana be legal?

Milk – Should humans consume dairy milk?

Minimum Wage – Should the federal minimum wage be increased?

Net Neutrality – Should the U.S. have net neutrality laws?

Obesity – Is obesity a disease?

Olympics – Are the Olympic games an overall benefit for their host countries and cities?

OTC Birth Control Pills – Should birth control pills be available over-the-counter (OTC)?

Penny – Should the penny stay in circulation?

Pit Bull Bans – Should breed-specific legislation (“pit bull bans”) be enacted?

Pokémon – Is Pokémon Go good for our society?

Police Body Cameras – Should police officers wear body cameras?

Prescription Drug Costs – Should the U.S. federal government regulate prescription drug prices?

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Private Prisons – Should prisons be privatized?

Recreational Marijuana – Should recreational marijuana be legal?

Reparations for Slavery – Should the federal government pay reparations to the descendants of slaves?

Right to Healthcare – Should all Americans have the right (be entitled) to health care?

Sanctuary Cities – Should sanctuary cities receive federal funding?

Santa Claus – Is there really a Santa Claus?

Saturday Halloween – Should Halloween be moved permanently to Saturday?

School Uniforms – Should students have to wear school uniforms?

Single-use Plastics Ban – Should single-use plastics be banned?

Social Media & Digital Addiction – Does social media spur digital addiction and other social ills?

Social Security Privatization – Should social security be privatized?

Space Colonization – Should humans colonize space?

Standardized Tests – Do standardized tests improve education in America?

Student Loan Debt – Should student loan debt be eliminated via forgiveness or bankruptcy?

TikTok Bans – Should TikTok be banned?

Uber & Lyft – Are ride-sharing companies a benefit to society?

Universal Basic Income (UBI) – Should the United States implement a universal basic income?

U.S. Supreme Court Packing – Should packing the U.S. Supreme Court ever be considered?

Vaccines for Kids – Should states be allowed to mandate vaccines for school attendance??

Vaping E-Cigarettes – Is vaping e-cigarettes safe?

Vegetarianism – Should people become vegetarian?

Video Games & Violence – Do violent video games contribute to youth violence?

Voting Age – Should the voting age be lowered to 16?

Voting Machines – Are electronic voting machines the best method for voting?

Zoos – Should zoos exist?

Archived Topics

Please note that ProCon no longer updates these debates.

ACLU – Is the ACLU good for America?

Big Three Bailout – Should the big three car manufacturers be bailed out by the U.S. government?

Born Gay – Is sexual orientation determined at birth?

Climate Change – Is human activity primarily responsible for global climate change?

College Football Playoffs – Should college football replace the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) with a playoff system?

Dakota Access Pipeline – Should the Dakota Access Pipeline be completed?

D.A.R.E. – Is the D.A.R.E. program good for America’s kids (K-12)?

Gay Marriage – Should gay marriage be legal?

Congressional Insider Trading – Should insider trading by Congress be allowed?

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict – What are the solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

Obamacare – Is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) good for America?

Paying College Athletes – Should colleges and universities pay college athletes?

President Bill Clinton – Was Bill Clinton a good president?

President Ronald Reagan – Was Ronald Reagan a good president?

Presidential Election, 2008 – Which candidate would make the best U.S. president?

Presidential Election, 2012 – Which candidate should be U.S. president in 2012?

Presidential Election, 2016 – The candidates and where they stand on the issues

Presidential Election, 2020 – 2020 Presidential Election Site

Prostitution – Should prostitution be legal?

School Vouchers – Should states have school voucher programs?

Tablets v. Textbooks -Should tablets replace textbooks in K-12 schools?

Teacher Tenure – Should teachers get tenure?

Under God in the Pledge – Should the words “under god” be in the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance?

U.S. Drone Shot down by Iran – Was the U.S. drone shot down by Iran over international waters?

U.S.-Iraq War – Should the U.S. have attacked Iraq?

WTC Muslim Center – Is it appropriate to build a muslim community center (aka the ”ground zero mosque”) near the World Trade Center site?

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25 Essay Topics for American Government Classes

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If you are a teacher searching for essay topics to assign to your U.S. government or civics class or looking for ideas, do not fret. It is easy to integrate debates and discussions into the classroom environment. These topic suggestions provide a wealth of ideas for written assignments such as  position papers , compare-and-contrast essays , and  argumentative essays . Scan the following 25 question topics and ideas to find just the right one. You'll soon be reading interesting papers from your students after they grapple with these challenging and important issues.

• Compare and contrast what is a direct democracy versus representative democracy. 
• React to the following statement: Democratic decision-making should be extended to all areas of life including schools, the workplace, and the government. 
• Compare and contrast the Virginia and New Jersey plans. Explain how these led to the Great Compromise .
• Pick one thing about the U.S. Constitution including its amendments that you think should be changed. What modifications would you make? Explain your reasons for making this change.
• What did Thomas Jefferson mean when he said, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants?" Do you think that this statement still applies to today's world? 
• Compare and contrast mandates and conditions of aid regarding the federal government's relationship with states. For example, how has the Federal Emergency Management Agency delivered support to states and commonwealths that have experienced natural disasters?
• Should individual states have more or less power compared to the federal government when implementing laws dealing with topics such as the legalization of marijuana  and abortion ? 
• Outline a program that would get more people to vote in presidential elections or local elections.
• What are the dangers of gerrymandering when it comes to voting and presidential elections?
• Compare and contrast the major political parties in the United States. What policies are they preparing for upcoming elections?
• Why would voters choose to vote for a third party, even though they know that their candidate has virtually no chance of winning? 
• Describe the major sources of money that are donated to political campaigns. Check out the Federal Election Regulatory Commission's website for information.
• Should corporations be treated as individuals regarding being allowed to donate to political campaigns?  Look at the 2010 Citizens United v. FEC ruling on the issue. Defend your answer. 
• Explain the role of social media in connecting interest groups that have grown stronger as the major political parties have grown weaker. 
• Explain why the media has been called the fourth branch of government. Include your opinion on whether this is an accurate portrayal.
• Compare and contrast the campaigns of U.S. Senate and House of Representatives candidates.
• Should term limits be instituted for members of Congress? Explain your answer.
• Should members of Congress vote their conscience or follow the will of the people who elected them into office? Explain your answer.
• Explain how executive orders have been used by presidents throughout the history of the U.S. What is the number of executive orders issued by the current president?
• In your opinion, which of the three branches of the federal government has the most power? Defend your answer.
• Which of the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment do you consider the most important? Explain your answer. 
• Should a school be required to get a warrant before searching a student's property? Defend your answer. 
• Why did the Equal Rights Amendment fail? What kind of campaign could be run to see it passed?
• Explain how the 14th Amendment has affected civil liberties in the United States from the time of its passage at the end of the Civil War.
• Do you think that the federal government has enough, too much or just the right amount of power? Defend your answer.
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Public policy - Essay Samples And Topic Ideas For Free

Public policy refers to decisions and actions of governmental entities directed towards addressing societal issues. Essays on public policy might explore the process of policy-making, the role of various stakeholders, or the evaluation of policy effectiveness. Discussions could also delve into specific policy issues like healthcare, education, or environmental policy, comparing different policy approaches across regions or analyzing the impact of particular policies on targeted populations. Investigating case studies or proposing policy reforms can provide a practical understanding of the complexities and implications of public policy. A substantial compilation of free essay instances related to Public Policy you can find at Papersowl. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Public Policy for its Nationals

Public policy implies the moves made by government and its decisions that are relied upon to deal with issues and improve the individual fulfillment for its nationals. At the bureaucratic measurement, open techniques are requested to coordinate industry and business, to guarantee nationals at home and abroad, to help state and city governments and people, for instance, the poor through financing educational programs, and to engage social destinations. A system set up and assisted by the organization encounters a couple […]

Public Policy in Government Essay

Public policy is used by the government to create order or to look into the issues that are affecting the citizens of the United States. They are carried out through following guidelines that are indicated in the constitution. A policy is not a tangible thing but rather, public policy is used to describe a set of laws, regulations, and mandates. They are made through a political process. This legal process helps the government be able to create laws that serve […]

Medicare for all

Health Care, something every person must have but yet it is something that can be very difficult for some to obtain. With a service that is so essential in life, it would seem that we would have found better ways to serve people's needs without creating just a huge financial burden. Companies and people in positions of power have been and are currently trying tirelessly to find ways for healthcare to become more feasible for the average American household to […]

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Social Movements – Research

In this research paper, we look at the wonders of social developments, starting with a short discussion of the historical significance of the subject in sociology. We plot the interactions within developments, among movements, and with the environment outside of the developments, including both the government and whatever is left of society. Now offering a working meaning of ""social development"" distinguishing key issues in understanding the beginnings, improvement, and extreme effects of social developments. The study of different types of […]

Celebrities Private Life

Celebrities are continually encircled by open consideration, and it's difficult to envision that they can be separated from everyone else for some time.  With paparazzi consistently waiting to pounce and various approaches to interface with online media, it tends to be hard to get your life far from the public eye, however certain celebrities are demonstrating that it's certainly feasible. Being a VIP can give you acclaim, fortune, and opportunity. In any case, for some celebs, life in the public […]

Race, Ethnicity and Politics

There have been a lot of studies focusing on the relationship between race and political attitudes or gender and political attitudes, however, as groups assimilate in the United States there has become an increase in the studies that evaluate how gender and race interact simultaneously. The work of both Gay and Tate (1998) and Philpot and Walton (2007) focuses on how gender and race interact for black women and whether gender and/or race guides decision making. According to Gay and […]

California’s Housing Zoning Problems

In fact, there have been many attempts to use State law to address the zoning problem, but none have been successful. One such attempt is the Housing Element Law. According to California’s housing department, the law requires that “all local governments (cities and counties) adequately plan to meet the housing needs of everyone in the community” (Regional Housing Needs Allocation). This law was passed in 1969, when the housing price in California was just 30% more than the national average, […]

Medicare is very Beneficial for the United States

Politics surrounding healthcare have always been a very controversial topic amongst the public and political officials. Topics such as lowering healthcare costs, the ability of hospitals to merge, and most importantly the move towards universal coverage are highly researched and gravitate a lot of attention. More specifically, universal coverage is very popular and appealing towards the vast majority of Americans. The reason why universal coverage is popular is due to the fact that the American population face major amounts of […]

Medicare and America’s Entitlement

In the book “A Nation of Takers” Nicholas Eberstadt explains to us how America’s entitlement has become a huge problem in the last fifty years. Eberstadt notes how in 1960, entitlement payments accounted for under a third of the federal government’s spending. While today, entitlement spending accounts for a full two-thirds of the federal budg. In the book, Eberstadt has many graphs and data to show us examples of how America’s entitlement is growing exponentially. He shows the over spending […]

Policy Innovation is Commonly Defined as the Adoption of New Policy

Policy innovation is commonly defined as the adoption of new policy by a participating government. Scholars have studied this political phenomenon quite effectively through field research and analyzing data through presented by institutions actions. The readings that we have been assigned have analyzed three main pathways that lead to policy innovation. The organizational means in which public officials and governmental entities need to adopt to outside pressure. The cultural shifts that cause the general public, the constituents of the public […]

Deep in the Heart of Textbooks

Abstract Economics, politics, and religion influence various disciplines inclusive of the field of education. In education, textbooks are produced by major publishing companies who possess the autonomy and authority to decide what content to incorporate within textbooks. This paper will explore findings gathered from my own research about concern with educational publishing, textbook development, and various factors that impact how textbooks are created and the content that should be included. This paper seeks to examine how textbooks are produced in […]

The Persistent Challenge of Gun Violence in Chicago: an In-Depth Analysis

Gun violence in Chicago has long been a subject of national concern, casting a shadow over the city known for its rich cultural history and architectural marvels. Despite numerous efforts to curb the crisis, Chicago continues to grapple with high rates of shootings and homicides, affecting countless lives and communities. Understanding the complexity of this issue requires a multifaceted approach, considering historical, socio-economic, and policy-driven factors that contribute to the persistent violence. Historically, Chicago's gun violence can be traced back […]

The Complexity and Impact of Block Grants in Public Policy

Block grants have become a pivotal component of public policy, significantly shaping the way federal funding is allocated to states and local governments. As a form of financial aid, block grants are distinguished by their flexibility and broad usage guidelines, which contrast sharply with more restrictive categorical grants. Understanding the intricacies of block grants, their benefits, and potential drawbacks is crucial for appreciating their role in modern governance. At their core, block grants are lump sums of money granted by […]

J. Edgar Hoover: could the Master of Secrets have Led as President?

J. Edgar Hoover the name itself conjures images of clandestine operations whispered secrets and the steely enforcement of law. Best known for his role as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Hoover's tenure was marked by a complex blend of innovation in crime-fighting techniques and controversial methods of intelligence gathering. But what if this master of secrets had pursued the ultimate seat of power? Could Hoover have steered the course of the United States as its […]

Understanding the Libertarian Party: Principles and Influence

Originally created in response to what its founders saw as an overreaching government that was stifling economic potential and interfering with personal freedoms, the Libertarian Party is a political organization that promotes individual liberty, limited government, and free-market economics. As of right now, the party is still committed to advocating for a society in which people are free to live their own lives as long as they do not violate the rights of others. The basic goal of the Libertarian […]

The Landmark Social Security Act of 1965: Transforming American Healthcare

The Social Security Act of 1965 is recognized as a landmark achievement in the history of American healthcare, having profoundly altered the lives of millions of individuals by providing them with access to medical care. This landmark legislation established Medicare and Medicaid, two essential programs that have developed into the mainstays of the American healthcare system. Gaining a grasp of this legislation's origins, effects, and lasting significance is crucial to comprehending how it has impacted the lives of several Americans. […]

The Far-Reaching Effects of McDonald V. Chicago on American Gun Rights

A turning point in American constitutional law was the 2010 Supreme Court decision in McDonald v. Chicago, which addressed the Second Amendment's applicability to state and local governments and raised important questions about the scope of individual gun ownership rights. The decision not only clarified the interpretation of the Second Amendment but also highlighted the ongoing debate about striking a balance between individual freedoms and public safety. This major Supreme Court case started with a Chicago resident named Otis McDonald […]

Assessing the Success of Reaganomics: Economic Impact and Long-Term Effects

Reaganomics stands as one of the most hotly debated economic policies in modern history, generating extensive analysis and controversy during Ronald Reagan's presidency in the 1980s. Named after the 40th President of the United States, this comprehensive strategy aimed to stimulate economic growth, combat inflation, and reduce government interference in the market. The core of Reaganomics rested on four main pillars: tax cuts, deregulation, fiscal restraint, and tight monetary policy. These components were intended to boost private sector innovation and […]

The Legacy of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in American History

In the annals of American history, few governmental initiatives have left as profound a mark on the nation's landscape and culture as the Works Progress Administration, commonly known as the WPA. Established during the Great Depression in 1935 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, the WPA aimed to alleviate unemployment by providing jobs to millions of Americans through public works projects. These projects spanned a wide array of sectors, including infrastructure, the arts, education, and social services, fundamentally reshaping […]

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Public Speaking Tips & Speech Topics

170 Good Policy Speech Topics

Jim Peterson has over 20 years experience on speech writing. He wrote over 300 free speech topic ideas and how-to guides for any kind of public speaking and speech writing assignments at My Speech Class.

A policy speech will essentially be a persuasive speech on some area of public policy . The subject can be an existing public policy, along with the speaker’s statements either supporting or opposing the policy. It may also be a proposed policy that the speaker believes is ineffective. Finally, the speech may concern a public problem and the speaker’s own ideas on how it could best be solved. This could be the speaker’s own ideas, or any combination of ideas already proposed by experts.

The speaker’s first challenge is to clearly describe the problem, and to persuade the audience to care about seeking a resolution . If the audience does not understand why the issue is important to society, and how it affects them personally, the rest of the speech is unlikely to be successful. The chosen problem may be a well-known controversial issue, or it may be a new concern that is unfamiliar to the audience. Regardless, the key to a successful speech is getting the audience to understand the problem, and to instill in them a desire to solve it.

The second part of the speech will present the policy in question . The speaker will share their opinion on the procedure, specifically whether or not they believe it will be effective. It is important to remember that this should be an educated opinion, not simply an emotional viewpoint. For example, a speaker should not argue an abortion topic from an emotional perspective, but rather with scientific facts and reliable researched data.

The speech’s topic should concern a problematic subject area that will elicit audience participation in solving it. It should also be a topic in which the speaker can become highly proficient, and there should be adequate research and data to back up any argument for or against the subject. At the end of the speech, the speaker’s goal may be to ask for passive agreement, or to call for the audience to take immediate action.

Please also see other topic ideas: list of persuasive topics , list of informative topics , and list of argumentative speech topics .

Writing research paper? See our list of 667 research paper topics .

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List of policy persuasive speech topics

• Adoptees Right-to-Know Law
• Affirmative Action
• Aggregate productivity
• Agricultural Policy
• Agricultural subsidies damage African nations
• Art Censorship
• Attendance Policies (School, Work, etc.)
• Ban car racing in mass pollution areas
• Break Periods
• Censorship of Music
• Change K- School Start Times
• Client Complaints Procedures
• Climate Change Policy
• Company policy on computer usage
• Controlling the transportation fairs
• Corruption and bribery run today’s economy
• Crime Prevention
• Defense budget priorities
• Defense budget reduction
• Do you think immigration laws need to be revised
• Domestic Violence Drug Policy
• Downsizing Schools/Classrooms
• Drug Testing In The Workplace
• Election reform
• Emergency Procedures
• Eminent Domain
• Environmental sciences
• Equal Employment Opportunities
• Expanding Oil and Gas Drilling
• Female Genital Mutilation
• Feminists should be terminated
• Financial Assistance for Students
• Flood victims’ reforms
• Foreign Policy
• Freedom of Expression / Freedom of Speech
• Gambling Age should be Lowered
• Global Warming Laws
• Harassment Precautions
• Health Care Policy
• Hygiene Standards
• Identification Protocols
• Immigration Policies
• Job Discrimination based on Hair Color/Style
• Language Policy
• Legalizing prostitution could avoid campus date rape incidents
• Legalizing the sale of human organs could help reduce the lack of organ donors
• Maintaining Discipline in the Campus
• Medical Examination
• Merit Pay for Teachers
• National Tobacco Settlement
• Obstruction of Justice Laws
• Our constitution should protect hate speech
• Our foreign agenda for the United Nations
• Parents should be held responsible for their children’s actions
• Parliamentary terms should be limited
• Pension reform
• Police Brutality
• Policy to avoid betting in sporting events
• Political organizations should be forbidden at campuses
• Pornography on the Internet
• Prisoners’ Reforms
• Privacy Codes
• Racism and Racial Slurs (1st Amendment)
• Recycling Rules
• Regulations on applying safety devices
• School physical education should be required
• School Uniforms
• Sensor policy on the use of internet
• Sex education should stay the responsibility of the parents
• Sexist images of women should be banned
• Should our prison system change
• should teacher be graded
• Skateboarding Policies
• Smokers should be treated as drug addicts
• Social Security Reform
• State and church should be combined
• Sticking to the scheduled work hours and no two hour lunches
• Taxes (i.e. “sin” taxes, car taxes, taxation of the super rich)
• Teachers and Tenure
• Technical Loopholes in Law
• Teen Dating Violence Laws Strengthened
• The morning-after pill should be freely prescribed in drugstores and pharmacies
• The Patriot Act
• There is nothing wrong with the contents of Ten Commandments
• Trying Children as Adults
• U.S. policy toward Cuba
• VA Demerit Point System (driving)
• Videotaping In The Workplace
• Visitation Rules at your University/College
• Voter registration and absentee ballot
• Voting System (electoral college)
• Welfare mothers should be treated as working mothers
• Welfare reform
• What should be the minimum age for the voter?
• Whistleblower Procedure
• Why meals in school should be free
• Why restaurants who fail the health inspection the first time should be closed down
• Women in the Military
• Work Hours Plans
• Good governance means openness, transparency and accountability.
• Involvement of animals in research should be minimized, there are alternatives.
• Warrantless search and seizure must be allowed in the war on drugs and narcotics.
• We must ensure greater protection for marine environment biodiversity trough international protocols.
• There is nothing wrong with Double Dipping in collecting retirement pensions and company paycheck at the same time.
• We should spend 0.7 % of our gross national income on projects of international development.
• Guarantee free personal care for people with highest needs and serious diseases.
• Why invading North Korea is a no go plan.
• Tax exemptions on church property should be used for charitable and community work only.
• Terrorists should be tried in military tribunals and not in the regular criminal justice system.
• Why cities should insist on having their own local economic development policy.
• It is an illusion that green jobs are contributing to the economy and environment.
• Regulations to encourage healthy weight conditions among our youth.
• Stop clothing and textiles sweatshops.
• Support scholarship programs for street kids and at-risk kids.
• Eliminate weapons-usable materials from stores and shops.
• Administrative divisions ought to provide meaningful opportunities for disabled persons to access.
• The Kyoto Protocol does not effectively address carbon emission.
• Sanctions on Myanmar are largely ineffective.
• Western politicians should do more for the people on the African continent.
• Provide everywhere in our town access for people with disabilities. Parking, sanitary and access to a building.
• All voters should be required to show a photo identification or a fingerprint.
• Limit the President’s power to impose political sanctions on foreign nations. Using the blocking of assets method and trade restrictions often are effective.
• Everyone should have free access to some health care services.
• Urban shelters could help the homeless survive.
• We should spend more money to improve highways and railroads.
• We should not allow that the poor sell their organs for money.
• Housing, hiring and education must be equal for all.
• The government should spend more money to explore space solar systems.
• Corporation should have an accountability policy.
• It should be more difficult to get a divorce.
• Garbage recycling should be required.
• Sex-segregating classes improve achievements.
• Media producers should not prosecute students for downloading music education.
• K-12 students should learn a foreign language.
• Improving the economic infrastructure is the key to Middle East stability.
• Why smokers deserve rights.
• Stop child slave labor.
• Prohibit airliners to charge extra carry-on luggage fees.
• Offer appropriate and affordable housing to all citizens, just like companies do with expat housing for their overseas workers.
• Initiate a self-regulatory policy for the media.
• Nationalize oil spilling companies and seize all oil resources.
• Form a military alliance with East Asian countries.
• Enact laws to fight corruption in Africa to ensure economic growth and prosperity.
• Abolish diplomatic immunity for criminal activities.
• Guarantee fundamental rights for victims of cybercrime.
• Discontinue medically drugs that are unnecessary.
• Shut down all domestic internet traffic for state security reasons.
• Punish severely pupils taking drugs.
• Promote world literacy by adopting a school in development nations.
• Implement bullying policies.
• Ensure that the foods served are nutritionally balanced.
• Enact harsh penalties against public offensive behavior.
• Provide safe alternatives to regular vehicular travel.
• No-fly lists of airliners do have a lack of accuracy.
• We need an international forestry agency.
• Water is a hot issue in the Middle East.
• An international certification system for diamond exploration prevents conflict-diamonds trade.
• Russia is a growing threat.
• Cut import taxes for tourists in towns that need more income revenues.
• Impose a second home ownership tax.
• The government should cooperate with China.
• Police and community should join efforts to prevent crime.
• Employers should have the right to know a co-worker has HIV.
• Why China’s one-child policy violated basic human rights.
• The European Union have a federal president.
• The use of drugs in sport should be legalized.
• Parents should have to obtain a license for having children.
• Recycling should be the cornerstone of the environment policy course of action.
• Should we outlaw modifying genes or should we allow biotech interventions?
• Every nation should accommodate asylum seekers who are entering the country with a legal visa?

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Public Policy Essay: Meaning, Components, and Structure

Public policy essay writing provides an atmosphere for people to make significant contributions to the advancement of society by acting as links between ideas and deeds. Regardless of whether you are a student, policymaker, or just interested in the dynamics of influencing the public conversation, you must comprehend the intricacies of writing compelling essays that serve purpose and clarity. However, we know that it is tough for students to write such essays on their own. This is why we have brought you a comprehensive guide where we break down public policy essays by exploring their deep meaning, breaking down key components, and structure. This blog curated by All Assignment Help will clear all your doubts regarding a public policy essay.

So let’s get started!

What Is a Public Policy Essay?

A public policy essay is an essential resource for anyone looking to have a meaningful conversation about the laws that form their society. This written analysis goes deeper into the complexities, consequences, and possible solutions to policy issues, going beyond their obvious surface level.

A public policy essay is essentially a thoughtful, well-researched analysis that breaks down a specific policy, covering its background, guiding ideas, and practical implications. Moreover, this type of writing enables authors to express not just their opinions about particular policies but also suggestions for reforms or alternate courses of action.

Furthermore, a public policy essay offers a chance for people to participate in the continuing conversation about societal issues and the policies that attempt to address them. However, writing an essay on a public policy topic requires a lot of time and effort, and yet students fail to write a well-researched essay on their own. Hence, we suggest that they should seek online essay writing services where they will be assisted by professional essay writers who will work according to their needs.

Read Here: Personal Essay- Examples, Structure, and Writing Tips

Key Components of a Public Policy Essay

Although writing a public policy essay requires precise organization and planning in order to convey your thoughts clearly. The following are the key components that you should include in your public policy essay writing:

Introduction

• Describe the background of the topic or subject you are discussing.
• Give a clear explanation of your essay’s major point or goal.

The Problem Statement

• Give a precise definition of the topic or problem your essay is trying to solve.
• Justify its importance and the need for attention.

Overview of Policy

• Describe the public policy that you will be talking about.
• Give a brief overview of the goals, purpose, and background of the policy.

Analysis of Policy

• Talk about the implementation of the policy and any difficulties encountered.
• Determine whether the policy is successful in resolving the stated issue.
• Give a clear description of the aims and objectives of the policy.

Policy Alternatives

• Describe some different approaches to policy.
• Consider the benefits and drawbacks of each choice.

Suggestions

• Make suggestions for enhancing the current policy or putting forth a fresh strategy in accordance with your findings.
• Provide logic and supporting data to support the suggestions you make.
• Highlight how important the problem is and how important your suggestions are.
• Summarize the main points of your essay.
• Provide a detailed reference list for every source you used and cited in your writing.
• Use citation styles ( APA , MLA, Chicago, etc.) consistently.

However, don’t forget to utilize clear, succinct language, logical flow, and examples and facts to back up your claims. Furthermore, keep in mind any particular instructions or specifications given by your instructor. Also, you can hire an essay helper online if you need any kind of assistance in writing your essay. The essay helper will not only write your essay but also provide you with the knowledge needed to write a flawless public policy essay.

How To Structure A Public Policy Essay?

Writing a public policy essay that successfully communicates your position on the topic requires a well-organized strategy. A compelling introduction draws the reader in and establishes the framework for your arguments. Therefore, a proper essay structure is essential to successfully convey your ideas and arguments in your essay. Here is a general outline to assist you in structuring your essay:

Create an Eye-Catching Introduction

Your main goal in the opening should be to use a hook that will captivate the reader. This might be accomplished by posing an intriguing question, providing an eye-opening statistic, or including a relevant quotation. Move on to giving background information on the public policy issue you will be addressing once you have the reader’s attention. This background information should be brief and provide readers with the essential context to understand the complexities of the policy issue.

Present a Concise Thesis Statement

Now, give an easy-to-understand and understandable thesis statement after the introduction. This sentence acts as the essay’s center. It summarizes your position on the public policy matter and highlights the primary points you will make in the essay. Moreover, it serves as a road map for your readers, pointing them in the direction of what you are saying. However, to create a concise thesis statement, you need to create a lesson plan assignment so that your statement won’t miss anything important.

State The Significance and Context

Once your thesis has been established, explore the public policy problems larger context. Give a thorough analysis of the political, social, and economic forces that have influenced the necessity for the particular policy. Afterwards, show how important the issue is by explaining the potential consequences of ignoring it and highlighting how the suggested policy would be able to help with these issues.

Conduct Literature Review

Perform a comprehensive literature review. Provide a summary of the most important conclusions drawn from studies, policies, and other relevant literature that are relevant to the public policy problem. By doing this, you show that you understand the current topic and the voids your essay seeks to fill, as well as establish the intellectual foundation for your argument. Thus, conduct a deep literature analysis so that you can provide useful information to the readers.

Write Body Paragraphs

Make sure to highlight the policy analysis part in the first body paragraph. Begin by outlining the precise goals that the suggested policy seeks to accomplish. Analyze the different alternatives or options for policy in depth. Afterward, seamlessly transition to the details of putting the selected policy into practice in the second body paragraph. Lastly, identify potential obstacles to policy execution and take appropriate action. Identify any obstacles or objections to the suggested policy. Also, provide thoughtful responses to these challenges and openly acknowledge them.

Together, these initial sections provide your readers with a clear picture of the public policy essay context, significance, and body of existing knowledge. Additionally, they also establish the groundwork for an in-depth study of the topic.

Also Read: How to Write an Outstanding 900-Word Essay

Some Suggested Public Policy Essay Topics

You should certainly think about the ideal topics if you want to write a persuasive and interesting public policy essay. However, you should choose a topic that is relevant to the current time. It needs to spark debate and hold the attention of your readers. It would be simple to conduct the necessary study to get sufficient data and proof to back up your claims. Therefore, we have brought you the latest and trendiest essay topics that you can choose from for your next public policy essay.

The following list includes some suggested essay topics that you might find interesting:

• The economic effects of immigration policy
• How well the financial sector is regulated by the government?
• The function of the state in guaranteeing health care accessibility
• How well government initiatives to fight poverty are working?
• Transportation policy: the involvement of the government
• The way the government can help to promote inexpensive housing
• The success of government initiatives to advance renewable energy
• How well government support for the arts is working?
• What and how well-performing government initiatives are at helping small enterprises?
• How the restaurant industry is affected by government regulations?
• The efficiency of public funds allocated to space exploration
• Effects of governmental regulation on the technology sector
• The function of the state in advancing technological innovation
• How well government money is used to advance technology?

Writing a flawless public policy essay requires you to select an appropriate topic that gives something to the readers. With these topics at your hand, you can choose one that you find most suitable for your next essay writing.

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• EMU Library
• Research Guides

Selecting a Topic for a Policy Brief

Ace the assignment, what is a policy brief, think tanks for policy ideas, think tanks for criminology.

• Think tanks and advocacy organizations
• Reference and Information
• Locating Full Text
• Searching for News Articles
• Statistical Sources
• Legal Information
• Working with Sources
• Citing Sources

Success tip:  don’t just read the assignment, analyze it!

Professors expect students to follow directions carefully, but what do they actually mean by those directions? Figure out what an assignment is really asking, and you have the key to a successful paper.

• What Does the Professor Want? This free online book offers useful insights into university-level writing. more... less... Book Name: Writing in College Author: Amy Guptill Publisher: Open SUNY Textbooks Publication Date: 2016 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-942341-21-5
• Purdue OWL: Understanding Writing Assignments This online guide recommends starting on the right track by clarifying the purpose, audience and resources needed for your project.
• UNC Writing Center: Understanding Assignments This handout shows how to grab every nugget of insight from the assignment.
• Assignment Calculator Plan a schedule for completing a library research paper. Note: this is a general calculator, and the links to resources are not specific to EMU.
• Answering Assignment Questions This guide describes how to analyze the assignment in order to understand what the Professor expects.

Here are some examples and models of policy briefs.  Note: these examples might not follow the format expected by your professor or employer, so read your assignment carefully!

• International Centre for Policy Advocacy - Policy Brief resources
• Johns Hopkins Women and Children's Health Policy Center - Writing Policy Briefs module
• PolicyOptions.org - guide for an Issue Brief
• CIAO database search for Policy Briefs The CIAO database provides many types of articles, including nearly 7,000 policy briefs. Limit your search to policy briefs in the left-hand column of the main page.
• RAND corporation Provides a mixture of policy research, analysis and recommendations.

A Policy Brief should address a current social problem, or in Criminology, a problem related to crime or criminal justice. It is important to narrow down the problem to something that can be defined and measured.  Example: starting with the general problem of recidivism, after some exploring you might decide to focus on diversionary programs to reduce recidivism, but that is still too broad, so you might eventually develop a policy brief about a particular program: community reparations; and a particular population: juveniles. 

How to choose a topic:

• Consider the lectures and readings in your other courses.  Did something come up that you would like to know more about?
• Talk to experienced students about your interests and studies.
• Read newspapers and magazines such as:  New York Times (or the NYT Learning Network ), Wall Street Journal , New Yorker , Harpers , Atlantic , Popular Science , or similar.
• Explore the National Criminal Justice Reference Service ( NCJRS )
• Explore Political Science databases, especially CIAO
• Explore criminology databases and books such as the Springer Briefs series.
• Check the Encyclopedia of Social Work  

Try to find a topic that is not very common or very typical.  Usually the top topics in a database like CQ Researcher or Opposing Viewpoints are already over-worked.  Dig a little deeper to fnd something fresh.

Once you have some general ideas, it is time to focus .  In order to write a coherent brief, you must focus or sharpen your topic by exploring different aspects and problems, or by addressing a question. 

How to focus:

• Ask questions .  For example, if your topic is immigrants as crime victims, ask, what about it?  Ask yourself questions about definitions and characteristics, causes, and influences.
• Read to learn .  Later you will be reading for research, but start with reading to get an overview or outline of your topic.  Good places for this kind of reading might include the websites of advocacy organizations, articles or book chapters that give overviews of the topic, and for more advanced students, see the Annual Reviews series for your subject area, such as Sociology or Law & Social Science . Think Tanks and policy institutes are great resources to discover interesting social problems (see the Think Tanks section of this guide).

Even when you have focused your topic, you are still not quite done with this phase.  Now it's time to make sure you have something that is not too general and also not too narrow. 

How to check the focus :

• A policy brief is not an opinion paper. If you are simply arguing that something is good or bad, should or shouldn't be done or exist, you're not focused yet.
• A policy brief is not a report.  If you are only reporting or repeating information, then you do not have a good focus.
• If there is too much information, then limit to one particular part of the problem, a place, time or other aspect. For example, if bullying in schools has too much information, consider one time period, a particular kind of school, only indigenous people, or similar.
• Sometimes people get stuck with questions about which there is not enough information (such as "music therapy for nonviolent adolescent sexual offenders with autism") It is possible that research has not been done or data not collected, and you will find no information.  If this happens, then broaden to question to a wider area or more general problem.
• EMU guide to Michigan think tanks
• EMU guide to policy and advocacy groups
• MSU Library guide for Think Tanks
• Google: Think Tanks and Public Policy Groups This search engine searches Think Tanks and Public Policy websites.
• List from Wikipedia
• List from WSU
• List from Georgetown Univ
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• Last Updated: Aug 29, 2024 9:36 AM
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Home — Essay Samples — Government & Politics — Political Systems & Ideologies — Public Policy

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Understanding Public Policy

Checked : Mark A. , Greg B.

Latest Update 21 Jan, 2024

12 min read

Table of content

What is Public Policy?

What is the nature and scope of public policy.

Students taking economics at higher levels of education should understand public policy and what it represents. It is one of the most important topics, as it leads one to understand why and how governments make certain policies. When there is an issue within an economy, say a high inflation rate or a depression, the government comes up with different approaches to resolve them. But that is just for fiscal and monetary policies. Public policy is wider and takes on more serious issues concerning how people generally live and interact.

The public policy becomes an academic pursuit in the early 1950s and has been expanding into different dimensions ever since. Today, the subject is attempting to acquire the status of a discipline. And since it is the study of products on governments, it is a vital organ in different social science studies, including economics and management. Public policy has received such a huge and rapid growth in the academic arena, attracting researchers, teachers, and public administrators who now feel it is becoming complex. All disciplines associated with public policy cut through traditional academic lines on demarcation. This means it is an inter-disciplinary subject that has become quite interesting and thought-provoking.

Public policy has continued to be more challenging by the day. It has achieved so much attention over the past few years, yet many still don't understand how it works.

In the field of economic studies, the policy comes in as an instrument of direction and resolutions. It seeks to offer guidelines on what should be done when certain situations arise and how stakeholders should handle economic shocks. Therefore, it is vital to learning policy because sooner or later, you will be required to apply.

That is why, in this unit, we shall be looking at the meaning, nature, scope, and importance of public policy. There is a significant constant change in the conceptualization of 'public' and 'private' domains in the study of policy, which should be well understood too. We also attempt to look at this subject to understand the changes and what they mean to society, both socially and economically.

The term public policy is one of the most common terms used in our daily lives. It is also a major aspect of academic literature where we use terms such as education policy, fiscal policy, and monetary policy, among other various references in different disciplines. It is an area that involves all spheres labeled as public. The idea behind public Policy presupposes that there is an aspect of life that is common, and far from an individual or purely private.

During the initial years of public policy studies, it was only in researchers and political science students who got involved. Their focus was mainly on the institutional structure and philosophical justification of the government. In other words, they never sort to look at the policies themselves. Instead, they only focused on making the government look good. Political science was mostly preoccupied with the political activities of different political institutions. It concentrated on understanding political statuses and how they change governance. Yet, the policy is a critical component of the political process. It helps participants understand why certain directions should be taken and not anything else.

According to Thomas Dye, a renowned scholar of policy analysis, the traditional approach to a public policy defined the institution where the policy was formed. However, the relationship between crucial institutional arrangements and public policy consent was not very much explored. He continues to note that the political science of the modern era is shifting more towards public policy, which means it is now more about the description and explanation of causal and consequential activities of public policy. Economic studies have also focused more on understanding the cause for public policy and what determines which policy to be applied under certain circumstances. Modern political sciences have also focused on the organization of public authorities and public servants' behavior. This approach means determining the formulation of public policy is much harder. Even though it is largely contended that experienced policy implementation feeds back into the more in-depth application of policy-making processes, economic studies, more than political sciences, attempt to apply policy issues into the public field of administration. By seeking to understand how policies are generally made, it helps stakeholders, and the general public knows which policies are useful in resolving economic and administrative issues.

The public-policy-studies' past has mainly focused on the policy's content and the process of formulation and application. Today, this subject's study has evolved into its own discipline known as policy science, formulated by Harold Laswell in 1951.

There are two aspects of public policy that make it a worthy subject of study.

The 'public' is the first and most important concept of public policy. You may have come across terms such as 'public interest,' 'public sector,' 'public opinion,' and many others that involve the public. They are all founded on public policy, which means the spheres involved have to do with 'public' instead of 'private.' The public sector is made up of human activities regarded as requiring government intervention or common action. Despite this clear definition, there has always been a conflict between what is regarded as 'public' and what should be seen as 'private.' W.B Baber states that there are ten main points that differentiate the public from the private sector.

He says, public policy:

• Face more complicated and ambiguous tasks
• Faces more issues implementing its decision
• Involves more people motivated by a wider interest.
• Us concerned more with securing opportunities or implementing capacities.
• Compensates for market failure
• Engages in activities that bring out more significance
• Has strict standards of commitments and legality
• Must operate in the public interest
• Maintains a minimal level of public support.

Because of these key features, public administration emerged, coming in to secure public interest rather than private. Political economists hold that only markets can balance private and public interest, which is true. But new liberalism is founded on a belief that public administration is a more rational approach to encouraging public Policy. In this case, the civil servant is mainly tasked to serve the interests of those who elected them. This means public bureaucracy is different from anything that exists in the private domain. The issue of rational public interest became a major point of argument after World War II. Herbert Simon describes bureaucrats as exhibiting a large function of 'bounded rationality.'

The second aspect of public policy is the idea of 'policy,' and, like the concept of 'public,' is not a very precise term. It is a denotation of guidance of action, among other elements. Therefore, a policy can take different forms, including a declaration of goals, declaration of course of action; declaration of general purpose; and an authoritative decision. Hogwood and Gunn state that there are ten applications of the term 'policy,' where it a label for a field activity, the show expected state of affairs; specified proposals; government decision; frontal authority; a program; an output, a result, a model or thought; and a process. But the policy is something that cannot be seen from a single perspective because it assumes different forms. There is a push to designate policy as 'outputs' of the political system. Hence, public policy has been defined lesser as more or less inter-dependent concerned with different activities. Public policy studies have contrastingly focused more on the examination of policy decisions concerning specific values, more than just a political analysis.

This are magnum issues that can be recognized from various definitions that have come from different scholars. Y. Dror states that policies are a general directive of the mainline of action that should be followed. Peter Self also opines that policies change directives as to how tasks should be understood and undertaken. Sir Geffrey Vickers says polices are decisions giving directions in relation and continuity to the courses of action, which the responsibility of the decision-making body. And according to James Anderson, Policy can be regarded as the "purposive action course followed by an actor or actors handling a certain issue. According to Thomas Dye, public policy is the decision of governments. All these definitions have something in common, that policy involves an action, which should be taken or followed by concerned parties.

We have already seen what public Policy and why it has become such a huge concern for modern governments. It is also good to note that policy may be general or specific, narrow or broad, simple or complex, discretionary, or detailed, among other features. In economics, public policy is more emphasized as to what the government chooses to do or not to do. In which case, it can appear into three categories:

• Activities attached to a specific policy
• Activities that are more general in nature.
• Activities based on vague and ambiguous policies.

However, it is rare to find government with a set of guiding principles for every activity in real life. This means some decisions are just made because they come as an impromptu. The Supreme Court comes in with its decisions to offer new interpretations for some constitution articles that may seem hard to comprehend.

Public policy may cover a larger part of its activities, which follow the country's development policy. For instance, the development policy can be adopted through the socio-economic development, equality, or similar broad principles of guidance for action. It can also be adopted as a basic framework of goals. As stated above, public policy may be narrow, covering specified activities, like child labor protections, or maybe as wide as women's empowerment.

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In modern political systems, public policy is seen as purposive or goal-oriented statements. Also, public policy may be negative or positive. Positive public policy may some form of government intervention resolve a particular issue, like policies to shield markets from failure. On the other hand, a negative public policy could be when public servants refuse to take action on some matters the government is required to handle. Public policy is also defined by legal coercive qualities accepted by citizens as legitimate – like paying of taxes to avoid severe penalties.

The nature of public policy can be better understood when compared to related concepts, including:

• Policy-making and decision-making where policies influence decisions. However, policy-making does involve decision-making, but not every decision carries a policy.
• Policies and goals. Policies can be used as a means to end action. In other words, we can expect policies to the deliberate choice of action to attain certain goals and objectives.
• Policy analysis and policy advocacy. There is some distinction between policy analysis and policy advocacy. In this case, policy analysis is all about discovering the impact of a policy.
• Policy analysis and policy management. There is a need to understand the distinction between policy analysis and policy management. However, despite their differences, they are linked through policy-making and cover a large aspect of senior administrations.

Apart from the nature of public policy, the scope is another significant aspect of its study. It consists of the development of scenarios and extrapolations of contemporary trends concerning the public. The public sector scope and size have grown exponentially, making it important to consider how it is linked to public policy.

In trying to understand public policy, there are many other aspects of the subject you are going to cover. For instance, some scholars have tried to discuss the typologies of the policy issue. According to Lowi, for instance, policy issues can be classified as distributive; regulative; redistributive; and constituent. There are other issues you will come across, including: Regulatory Policy issues, constituent policy issues, conflict policy issues, and bargaining policy issues.

It is also vital to understand the significance of public policy. In this case, we have seen that public policy is focused on resolving public problems. It seeks to determine how issues and problems are defined, constructed, and resolved. Also, policy is purposive and deliberately formulated, it is well-thought-out, the real action, it delineates a time frame and follows a defined course of action.

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Research Paper Topics for 2024: Explore Ideas Across Various Fields

When you start writing a research paper, it’s like diving into a big pool of exploration and analysis. A good research paper goes beyond just gathering facts. It’s more about exploring a topic, asking the right questions, and coming up with thoughtful answers. Whether you're looking at historical events, scientific discoveries, or cultural trends, the trick is to find interesting research topics that catch your interest and keep you motivated throughout the process.

This article is here to help with that sometimes tricky job of picking a topic. We’ll cover a variety of interesting research topics from different areas, making it easier for you to find one that not only fits your assignment but also grabs your attention.

But let’s be honest, picking the right topic isn’t always easy. If you’re still unsure after reading this article, EssayService is a great place to turn for help, whether you need assistance choosing a topic or writing the entire paper.

How to Pick a Topic for a Research Paper

Choosing the right topic can make or break your research paper. Here's how to make it easier:

• Start with your interests: Pick a few areas or subjects that genuinely interest you. Narrow it down to the one that excites you the most. If you’re interested, it’ll show in your writing.
• Check for resources: Before committing, do a quick search to ensure there are enough references available. You’ll want a topic that’s well-discussed so you have plenty of material to work with.
• Stick to guidelines: Make sure your topic fits within any guidelines your teacher has set. Whether it's avoiding certain subjects or meeting specific requirements, this step is crucial for getting your paper off to a good start.

If you’re looking for easy research paper topics, keep these tips in mind to ensure you choose one that’s both manageable and engaging.

What Are Good Research Topics?

Choosing a successful research topic isn’t just about what sounds interesting — it’s about finding a topic that will help you produce a strong, insightful paper. Good research topic ideas should tick a few key boxes to ensure they’re both impactful and manageable.

Best Research Paper Topics for 2024

In 2024, new challenges and innovations are shaping the world around us, making it an exciting time to dive into research. Here are 15 detailed and highly relevant topics that will keep your paper ahead of the curve:

• The impact of remote work on urban development in major U.S. cities.
• Ethical implications of AI-driven decision-making in healthcare.
• The role of social media algorithms in shaping public opinion during elections.
• Effects of climate change on global food security and crop yields.
• The influence of blockchain technology on supply chain transparency.
• Mental health outcomes related to long-term social media use among teenagers.
• Renewable energy adoption in emerging economies and its impact on local communities.
• The rise of electric vehicles and its effect on traditional automotive industries.
• Privacy concerns surrounding the use of biometric data in consumer devices.
• The evolution of cybersecurity threats in the age of quantum computing.
• Gender disparities in STEM education and their long-term effects on the workforce.
• The economic impact of climate migration on coastal regions.
• Implications of CRISPR technology in human genetic modification.
• The effectiveness of universal basic income trials in reducing poverty.
• The role of telemedicine in improving access to healthcare in rural areas.

College Research Paper Topics

These topics explore some of the most relevant and intriguing issues facing college students today, offering plenty of angles to explore in your research:

• How student loan debt shapes career paths and financial stability after graduation.
• Comparing online learning to traditional classrooms: What works best for today’s college students?
• Social media’s influence on mental health and academic success among college students.
• Diversity and inclusion: How initiatives are changing campus life and student experiences.
• University sustainability efforts: How climate change is driving new campus policies.
• The rise of esports: Transforming college athletics and student engagement.
• Campus housing: How living arrangements affect academic success and student retention.
• Balancing part-time jobs with academics: The impact on college students’ grades and well-being.
• Navigating controversial topics: The importance of academic freedom in college debates.
• Digital vs. traditional libraries: How technology is reshaping student research habits.
• Study abroad programs: Enhancing global awareness and boosting future career opportunities.
• Evaluating campus mental health services: Are they meeting students’ needs?
• Fraternities and sororities: Examining their influence on college culture and student life.
• Free college tuition: Exploring the economic and social outcomes in different countries.
• Standardized testing: How it’s affecting college admissions and the diversity of student bodies.

Research Paper Topics By Subject

Choosing a good research topic that aligns with your academic focus can make your work more relevant and engaging. Below, you’ll find topics organized by subject to help you get started.

Research Paper Topics on Health

Health is a dynamic field with ongoing developments and challenges, making it a rich area for research. These topics cover a range of health-related issues, from public health policies to advancements in medical technology:

• How COVID-19 has changed the approach to mental health care.
• Adoption rates of telemedicine among different age groups.
• Antibiotic-resistant bacteria: Exploring new treatment options.
• Barriers to healthcare access in low-income neighborhoods.
• Ethical dilemmas in using genetic testing for personalized treatments.
• Success rates of mental health programs in high schools.
• Comparing dietary patterns in managing type 2 diabetes across cultures.
• Teen vaping trends and their connection to lung health issues.
• Strategies for supporting healthcare needs in rapidly aging populations.
• Tracking climate-related health issues in coastal communities.
• Innovations in vaccine development for emerging diseases.
• Social isolation during pandemics and its link to anxiety disorders.
• Recent changes in U.S. healthcare laws and their influence on patient choices.
• Exploring how traditional beliefs shape approaches to medical treatment.
• Evaluating progress in global vaccination campaigns against childhood diseases.

Research Paper Topics on Medicine

Medicine is a vast field with plenty of areas to explore. Here are some specific topics that focus on medical advancements, practices, and challenges:

• New techniques in minimally invasive surgery for heart conditions.
• Developments in gene therapy for treating inherited diseases.
• Challenges in diagnosing and treating rare diseases.
• The role of AI in improving diagnostic accuracy in radiology.
• Progress in personalized cancer treatments based on genetic profiling.
• The rise of antibiotic alternatives in treating infections.
• Stem cell research advancements for spinal cord injuries.
• Managing chronic pain: Exploring non-opioid treatment options.
• Trends in telemedicine for rural healthcare delivery.
• Breakthroughs in vaccine technology for emerging viruses.
• Long-term outcomes of organ transplants in pediatric patients.
• Advances in robotic surgery and their impact on patient recovery.
• New approaches to treating drug-resistant tuberculosis.
• Innovations in prenatal care and fetal surgery techniques.
• The future of regenerative medicine and tissue engineering.

Research Paper Topics on Media

Explore the ever-changing world of media with these fresh and relevant topics. Each one dives into the trends and challenges shaping how we consume and create content today.

• Analyze the impact of TikTok on modern marketing strategies.
• Investigate the role of influencers in shaping public opinion during elections.
• Explore the effects of streaming services on traditional cable TV viewership.
• Examine how social media platforms handle misinformation and its consequences.
• Study the rise of podcasts and their influence on news consumption.
• Compare the portrayal of mental health in TV shows across different cultures.
• Track the evolution of digital journalism and its impact on print media.
• Look into the ethics of deepfake technology in video production.
• Research the effects of binge-watching on viewer behavior and mental health.
• Explore the relationship between video game streaming and the gaming industry.
• Analyze the shift from traditional news outlets to social media for breaking news.
• Investigate how algorithms curate personalized content and influence user behavior.
• Study the changing landscape of advertising in the age of ad-blockers.
• Examine the role of memes in political discourse and cultural commentary.
• Explore the use of virtual reality in media and entertainment.

Research Paper Topics on Politics

Politics is a field that’s constantly evolving, with new issues and debates emerging all the time. Whether you're interested in global dynamics, domestic policies, or the role of technology in politics, there’s no shortage of interesting topics to explore:

• How social media is influencing voter behavior in recent elections.
• The rise and impact of grassroots movements on political change.
• Fake news and its role in shaping public perception of political events.
• The effects of immigration policies on relationships between countries.
• Populism’s growth in global politics and what it means for the future.
• How economic inequality contributes to political instability.
• The power of political lobbying in creating and shaping laws.
• Challenges faced by democracies under authoritarian regimes.
• Youth activism and its growing influence in modern politics.
• How climate change policies are impacting national security.
• The role of technology in improving election security and voter turnout.
• Government approval ratings and their connection to pandemic responses.
• Influence of international organizations on a country’s domestic policies.
• Shifts in global trade agreements and their effects on international relations.
• The impact of gerrymandering on election results and fairness.

Research Paper Ideas on Technology

Technology is rapidly transforming our world, offering endless opportunities for research. Here are some intriguing ideas to explore:

• The ethics of artificial intelligence in decision-making processes.
• How blockchain technology is revolutionizing financial transactions.
• The role of 5G networks in shaping the future of communication.
• Cybersecurity challenges in the era of smart homes and IoT devices.
• The environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining.
• Virtual reality’s influence on education and training programs.
• How autonomous vehicles are changing urban planning and infrastructure.
• The potential of quantum computing in solving complex global problems.
• Social media algorithms and their impact on public discourse.
• The digital divide: Access to technology in rural versus urban areas.
• How wearable tech is transforming personal health management.
• The implications of deepfake technology in media and politics.
• The future of remote work and its long-term effects on productivity.
• Advancements in drone technology for disaster management and rescue operations.
• The role of big data in personalizing online shopping experiences.

Research Topic Ideas on Culture

Whether you’re interested in examining specific cultural practices or looking at how modern trends reshape traditional customs, these research topics will provide you with a focused and detailed starting point:

• Adoption of traditional Japanese tea ceremonies in contemporary urban settings.
• Practices of food preservation among Inuit communities in the Arctic.
• The revival of Celtic languages in Wales and Ireland through education programs.
• Depiction of queer relationships in Netflix original series from 2015 to 2024.
• Evolution of traditional African hairstyles in Black communities across the U.S.
• Transformation of street art in Berlin post-German reunification.
• Cultural significance of Día de los Muertos celebrations in Mexican-American neighborhoods.
• Popularity of Korean skincare routines among Western beauty bloggers.
• Modern interpretations of Norse mythology in Scandinavian literature.
• Changes in wedding rituals among Indian diaspora in the UK.
• Resurgence of indigenous Australian painting techniques in contemporary art.
• Representation of disability in children’s books published in the last decade.
• Use of traditional Māori patterns in New Zealand’s fashion industry.
• Changes in burial customs in urbanized areas of Southeast Asia.
• Incorporation of First Nations symbols in Canadian public architecture.

Research Paper Topics on Math

If you're looking to explore the depth and applications of math, these research topics are both specific and engaging:

• Applications of fractal geometry in modeling natural phenomena.
• Mathematical approaches to solving complex optimization problems in logistics.
• Development of new algorithms for large-scale data encryption.
• Mathematical modeling of population dynamics in ecology.
• The use of game theory in economic decision-making processes.
• Exploring the mathematics behind machine learning algorithms.
• Advancements in numerical methods for solving partial differential equations.
• Topological data analysis and its applications in computational biology.
• Mathematical analysis of voting systems and fairness.
• The role of number theory in modern cryptography.
• Predictive models for financial markets using stochastic calculus.
• Mathematical foundations of quantum computing and quantum algorithms.
• Applications of chaos theory in weather prediction.
• Geometry of space-time in the context of general relativity.
• Mathematical techniques for analyzing big data in social networks.

Research Paper Topics on Art

Art is full of fascinating details and stories waiting to be explored. If you’re into art research, here are some research topics that might catch your interest:

• How Caravaggio used light and shadow in his religious paintings.
• The way Cubism shaped Picasso’s "Les Demoiselles d’Avignon."
• Gustav Klimt’s "The Kiss" and its ties to Viennese culture.
• Hokusai’s woodblock techniques in "The Great Wave off Kanagawa."
• Bauhaus principles that still influence graphic design today.
• Emotions and color in Mark Rothko’s abstract paintings.
• Leonora Carrington’s role in the Surrealist movement.
• Gaudí’s architectural genius in designing La Sagrada Familia.
• Industrial scenes captured in Charles Sheeler’s Precisionist art.
• Jean-Michel Basquiat’s take on graffiti and cultural identity.
• Frida Kahlo’s evolving self-portraits through her life.
• Claude Monet’s unique use of light in his Impressionist works.
• Diego Rivera’s murals as powerful political statements.
• The simplicity and impact of Donald Judd’s minimalist sculptures.
• How African art influenced Henri Matisse during his Fauvist period.

Research Topics on Sports

Sports offer a wide range of topics that are both intriguing and highly relevant. Here are some specific research ideas to consider if you're looking to explore the world of sports:

• The biomechanics behind sprinting techniques in elite athletes.
• The psychological effects of team sports on adolescent development.
• Injury prevention strategies in professional football (soccer).
• The impact of altitude training on endurance performance in marathon runners.
• Gender equity in sports: The evolution of women’s participation in the Olympics.
• The role of nutrition in recovery and performance for endurance athletes.
• How advanced analytics are changing strategies in basketball.
• The effects of early specialization in youth sports on long-term athletic development.
• The influence of sports media coverage on public perceptions of athletes.
• Technology in sports: The use of wearable devices to monitor athlete performance.
• Doping scandals and their long-term impact on athletes' careers.
• Mental health challenges faced by retired professional athletes.
• The economics of hosting major sporting events like the World Cup or Olympics.
• How climate change is affecting outdoor sports events and training schedules.
• The evolution of sports science in enhancing athlete training programs.

In 2024, some of the most popular research topics include the impact of technology on sports, the psychological aspects of team dynamics, and the evolution of gender equity in athletics. 

If you’re still unsure about which topic to choose or need help with your essay, EssayService is a great option. Our research paper writing service can assist with everything from selecting the perfect topic to crafting a well-written paper, making the whole process a lot easier.

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The aftermath of fast fashion: how discarded clothes impact public health and the environment ., textile waste and environmental racism is a public health issue. and art may play a powerful role in advancing our advocacy..

The Aftermath of Fast Fashion

How discarded clothes impact public health and the environment, dielle lundberg, julia devoy, phd, mts, mba.

Every year, people in the United States throw out more than 34 billion pounds of used textiles. Divided across the population, that’s more than 100 pounds of textile waste per person each year. 

However, textile waste generation does not occur equally. People with higher incomes generate on average 76% more clothing waste than people with lower incomes.

Once textiles are discarded, 66% of them are sent to landfills in the U.S. where they decompose — some quickly and others over hundreds of years. While landfills in the U.S. are designed in theory to capture and contain landfill gasses and polluted waters that emerge during the decomposition process, numerous health concerns have been reported by people living near landfill sites. Landfills are also not located equitably. Landfills are 2.8 times more likely to be located in areas with a higher percentage of BIPOC residents.

Ultimately, only 15% of used textiles are theoretically ‘recycled,’ and of those, up to half are simply shipped abroad to other countries, largely in the Global South where they land in landfills there. These countries often have less advanced municipal waste systems, meaning that the environmental damage and health impacts of decomposing textiles will be much greater there than they would be in the United States.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by BU School of Public Health (@busph)

As Matilda Lartey , an environmental activist and artisan in Ghana, explained in a recent panel discussion , textile waste from the United States has multiple impacts on countries like Ghana: 

• Much of the clothing sent from abroad is of too low quality to use, meaning it goes directly into landfills or open-air dumps. From there, the gas and chemical leachates that emerge during the decomposition process pollute the air, soil, and groundwater and negatively impact the environment and health of humans and other species. 
• Unwanted used clothing often clogs the gutters, preventing water from flowing properly. This exacerbates flooding and leads to water-borne disease. This is particularly problematic as climate change has increased the incidence of flooding in many parts of the Global South.
• Due to limited space, people will burn unwanted clothing, resulting in significant air pollution impacting respiratory and cardiovascular health.

Many people in the Global North (primarily the US and Europe) assume when they donate clothes to organizations like Salvation Army, Goodwill, or Planet Aid that they will be reused locally, but this is typically not the case. The amount of used clothing that thrift stores in the United States receive greatly exceeds the amount that they are able to sell here. Thus their solution is to ship the excess clothing abroad.

But this system of shipping unwanted used clothing to other countries relies on a major assumption — that these countries ‘want’ it. Increasingly, that is simply not to be the case. Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Burundi have all either banned or attempted to ban used clothing imports.

While the issue of shipping clothing abroad often spurs a polarized debate between those concerned about its environmental and health impacts and those convinced that it benefits the countries who receive it, the real issue, at the end of the day, isn’t the fact that clothing is being shipped abroad but rather that the amount of clothing being shipped is far too great and the quality of the textiles sent is too low.

That’s where Aftermath comes in!

Aftermath, an environmental and public health sculpture is a large-scale art advocacy installation that explores the serious impacts of textile waste. As part of its upcoming national tour, the sculpture is on display at the Boston University School of Public Health from September 19 to October 7, 2022, in the lobby of the Talbot Building.

Created by developmental psychologist and social activist Julia DeVoy (associate dean of undergraduates at Boston College. LSEHD) and her long-time collaborator Dielle Lundberg (research fellow at BUSPH, public health data analyst, and multimedia artist), alongside premier artist Mark Cooper (professor at Boston College), the Aftermath sculpture brings together textiles, a landfill simulating reactor, and technology to ask: “What do we do with the mountain of used clothing that is being generated every single year in the United States?”

While the Aftermath sculpture is designed to invite more questions than answers, for those left yearning for solutions, the sculpture provides several entry points for learning. Embedded within the sculpture is activist ‘protest’ signs in the shape of everyday T-shirts that contain QR codes that link to Textile Waste Facts — a free and public 30-minute crash course on textile waste and environmental justice developed in tandem with the Aftermath sculpture. The multimedia learning modules include firsthand accounts from environmental activists and people affected by fashion pollution in the Global South, interactive data visualizations, and an opportunity to create your own personal action plan for contributing to individual and policy-level changes.

Ultimately, Aftermath challenges its audience to reframe fashion textile pollution as an issue of global public health and environmental justice that can only be solved through sustained, transdisciplinary and collective efforts to achieve real political and applied action changes.

While it does serve as a warning, it points to many generative possibilities too — most importantly the power of interdisciplinary, collaborative, and global dialogue to intervene in a climate crisis and create shared value for real people, planet, and purpose. 

The Activist Lab at the School of Public Health is partnering with Dielle Lundberg to bring “Aftermath” to the Boston University Medical Campus. The sculpture will be on display in the lobby of the Talbot Building from September 19 through October 7. The Activist Lab is also hosting a panel discussion on October 6 that explores the public health consequences of textile waste and environmental racism and the role that art can play in advancing public health .

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The Aftermath of Fast Fashion: How Discarded Clothes Impact Public Health and the Environment

Dielle Lundberg is a research assistant in the Department of Global Health at Boston University School of Public Health, and a 2019 graduate of BUSPH's MPH program. Profile

Julia DeVoy, PhD, MTS, MBA Julia Devoy’s research and teaching are concentrated on the‎ relationship of social class ‎variables to the human lifespan, with a focus ‎on social mobility ‎among low-income ‎global citizens that examines ‎personal aspects, as well as ‎ecological contexts‎ such as ‎family, faith, ‎workplace, ‎community and ‎educational ‎settings, which facilitate or constrain development. She is currently investigating ways in which economically disempowered individuals‎ develop dual ‎class-based ‎psychological identities in order to transition to elevated economic levels ‎while maintaining healthy ‎emotional‎ well-being and relational support.‎ In the field, she advises on the design of social impact initiatives as interventions for helping address systemic social inequities. Profile

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88 Healthcare Policy Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best healthcare policy topic ideas & essay examples.

• ⭐ Simple & Easy Healthcare Policy Essay Titles

💡 Good Essay Topics on Healthcare Policy

📌 most interesting healthcare policy topics to write about.

• Healthcare Policies in Nursing Informatics In this context, nurses aid in the technological transformation of the healthcare delivery system, particularly in the effective and efficient HIT deployment.
• Regulatory and Allocative Healthcare Policymaking This essay discusses health policies, the determinants of health, and the connections between the two. The determinants of health are individual and environmental factors that affect people’s physical and mental well-being and the ability to […]
• Advanced Practice Nurses: Impact of Healthcare Policy and Advocacy The healthcare policy can also dictate the approach used in compensating the APNs, thus affecting the attractiveness of the job. It influences policy change by making the followers commit to a new strategy that the […]
• Health and Social Care Practice and Policy It should begin by evaluating the effectiveness of the current initiatives in attaining various outcomes: William Burns can access health services with the equal quality as the other people and sleeping rough on health to […]
• The Health Care Policy Problems and Suggestions The health care policy presented in this paper looks at health care as a public policy that is pertinent to a country’s achievement of its vision.
• The Replacement for the ACA Healthcare Insurance Policy For example, the AHCA policy allows a waiver of the ACA’s healthcare provision for societal rating and enables the federal government to charge patients more capital regarding the payment of premiums.
• Healthcare Policies and Delivery To gain a better perspective of the healthcare policy and regulations within the organization, an interview with the Chief Nursing Officer was conducted. According to the CNO, the organization is explicitly dependent on the healthcare […]
• A Healthcare Public Policy Meeting on Number of Doctors The Committee thought it was crucial to gather all the information regarding the number of physicians needed by hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
• Johns Hopkins Healthcare: Policy Evaluation The survey for the patients to determine if the policy was appropriate for their Medicare plans is one of the measures used for evaluation.
• Healthcare Policy. S. 3799: Prevent Pandemics Act Among the threats to national security in the sphere of citizens’ health, the risks of complications of the epidemiological situation against the background of the unfavorable situation in foreign countries for a number of dangerous […]
• New Health Care Transparency Requirements: Policy Health Brief Access to this data is helpful to policymakers for identifying individuals and entities responsible for increasing the cost of health care.
• Standard of Care Delivery and Health Care Policies The providers believe that the services remunerated for are reasonable and correspond to the care offered to the clients. Moreover, they are confident the structures, procedures, and guidelines that are in place guarantee effective and […]
• Detailed Description of Healthcare Policy Bill This is due to the fact that from the very beginning of the increasing tendency of the human immunodeficiency virus widespread, people who became infected by this illness are not only physically but also mentally […]
• Health Care Policy Development The impact of climate change reduction on the health care delivery system and the existing higher occurrence of asthmatic diseases in the US can be tremendous.
• Healthcare Policy Overview and Analysis If the LCR mandated annual water testing in all schools, these schools would have discovered the health risk and taken appropriate measures to counter the effects. The LCR should mandate annual testing, reporting, and mitigation […]
• Steer, Not Row Concept of Healthcare Policy This ideology refuses to recognize the role of the clearly societal factors on people’s continual ability to enjoy the ‘fruits of civilization’ while proposing that the task of ensuring the continuation of socio-economic progress is […]
• Health Care Policy: HPV Vaccination It is important that these actors among others play a big role in influencing formulation of health policy. In this regard, it is necessary that content is marched up to its objectives of health policy.
• Self Evaluation: Healthcare Policy & Planning But upon enrollment and active participation in this course, I have benefited a great deal in not only evaluating the policy implications of healthcare legislation, but also in understanding ways through which I can undertake […]
• Evaluation of a Healthcare Policy Analysis This development has caused some legislators to question whether it is right for the federal government to continue funding the organization because it is unlawful for the government to finance abortion services.
• Development of Health Care Policies To begin with, the consultation process is carried out to define the benefits and shortcomings of the strategy. Constant monitoring of the results of the already adopted reforms is also necessary to define whether they […]
• Health Care Policy: Senate Bill 94 Allowing advanced practice registered nurses to order radiographic imaging tests is identified as the current healthcare policy issue in Georgia. It was intended to remove the barrier provided in the Georgia statutes that restricts APRNs […]
• TRICARE Health Care Policy Analysis Tricare has other services like Prime remote and Overseas that cater for service members when they are in areas not accessible to the care.
• U.S. Health Care Policy on Counterfeit Drugs These are pharmaceutical products produced and sold with the intention of misrepresenting their active ingredients, efficacy, safety, and authenticity. These include the pharmaceutical products, which are produced and approved in the U.

⭐ Simple & Easy Healthcare Policy Essay

• Goals of Healthcare Policy and Prevention of Epidemic A Healthcare policy refers to a statement of a decision about a goal in healthcare. War torn areas such as Afghanistan and Somalia are some of the main targets of the current healthcare policy.
• Healthcare: Policy Implementation and Modification Since the enactment of the Medicare Policy Act in 1965, the act has undergone several amendments in a bid to improve the level of accessibility and quality of health insurance coverage to all Americans.
• Healthcare Policy and Affordable Care Act: Four Key Issues As reported by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, the United States has the largest nursing workforce in the world, and yet it does not meet its residents’ demands.
• Promotoras’ Role in Healthcare and Social Policies Several people discuss promotoras serving as liaisons between communities and agencies, analyzing health and social issues, as well as motivating and informing the residents to participate in resolving said issues.
• Healthcare Responses in Health Policy: Reducing Disparities in Access to Health Care The issue of the Action Plan from the Department of Health and Human Services that consisted of the lack of activities’ specifications seems to be reasonable.
• Healthcare Reform in Modern Conditions: New Health Policy A healthcare reform in modern conditions is an integral part of the transformation of the social sphere as a whole and the general process of transformation of the American society.
• Affordable Care Act: Healthcare Policy Position The history of a single-payer system in the US is long and it dates back to the times of President Franklin Roosevelt in the 1930s when he proposed the adoption of a universal healthcare plan […]
• Trump’s Contributions to Healthcare Policy Also, Trump’s contributions to the healthcare system are strictly related to Medicaid services and the costs of insurance plans, but he has not managed to fulfill all of his goals yet.
• Clinton’s Plan and Obamacare: Healthcare Policy In September 1993, the president gave a major speech on health care in the US Congress, where he introduced the parts of the healthcare reform, including a mandate for employers, which forced them to cover […]
• Healthcare Policy Analysis: Outbreak of Flu in Illinois The seriousness of the problem is obvious, and it is necessary to work on the prevention of such statistics in the future.
• Health Care Policy and Regulations in the United States As for the significance of the chosen policy issue, it can be listed among the key problems of the United States as income inequality in the country has significantly increased since the end of the […]
• Florida Healthcare System: Policy Planning, Assessment, Evaluation, and Corrective Measures The changes in government revenue pattern and rates are majorly attributed to economic patterns, which affect the stability and financial power of the government and the changes in health care system as well as its […]
• Issues of the Health Care Policy in the USA It is also quite important to note that most of the establishments in the Healthcare industry are offices, which have been established for health practitioners such as dentists, physicians and doctors, among others.
• Health Care as an Essential Public Policy On the broader spectrum, huge expenditures on health care systems are directly related to the life’s satisfaction derived by individuals and the general public, the generational effects being the baseline of the benefits of the […]
• Economic Terms and Healthcare History: Policies to Enhance Access to Healthcare This has led to the evolution of healthcare economics as the costs for accessing medication shift from one sector of the economy to the other. Macroeconomics relates to the expenditure of the government and the […]
• Healthcare and Legal Issues: Containment Policies and Its Rates of Efficiency More to the point, the people in the given area will be unable to acquire information concerning the current status of the disease and the existing treatment methods.
• The Health Care Policy in the United Kingdom The main principles of the National Health Service are to provide healthcare services to all people, and this means all the medical services that the resident of the United Kingdom might need.
• Analyzing the Healthcare Policy – Personal Protective Equipment
• Are Remittances Good for Your Health? Remittances and Nepal’s National Healthcare Policy
• Linking Congressional Committees and Healthcare Policy
• Defining Health and Identifying Influences on Healthcare Policy
• Healthcare Advocacy and Its Impact on Healthcare Policy
• The Relationships Between Healthcare Policy and Economics
• Healthcare Policy Affecting Access, Cost, and Quality
• The Relations Between Healthcare Policy and Finance
• Healthcare Policy and Complications in the United States
• Overview of Healthcare Policy and Improvement of Patient Care
• Healthcare Policy and Economics of the Field of Nursing
• Analysis of Healthcare Policy and Its Effectiveness
• Assessing Quality of the Healthcare Policy
• Healthcare Policy and Regulations on Healthcare
• Importance of Healthcare Policy and Healthcare Financing
• Healthcare Policy Bill and Changes to Medicare
• How Healthcare Policy Influences the Working of the Nurses
• Healthcare Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments
• Market Competition: Implications for Healthcare Policy in the United States
• Healthcare Policy Issue and Nursing Strategies
• Population-Level Intervention and Information Collection in Dynamic Healthcare Policy
• Healthcare Policy Report: Medicares New Benefits Catastrophic Health Insurance
• Relationship Between Healthcare Policy, Regulations, and Finance
• Overview of Service Development and Healthcare Policy
• The Complicated Healthcare Policy in the United States
• The Current Healthcare Policy: A Stable Healthcare System
• The International Healthcare Policy Health and Social Care
• Why the American Healthcare Policy Needs a Reform
• Development of Healthcare Policy Since 1945 as a Result of Welfare Ideologies
• American Healthcare Policies and Nursing Role
• Childhood Vaccination as a Healthcare Priority Policy Issue
• Nurses and Their Role in New Healthcare Policy
• Long-Term Care Facilities and Healthcare Policy
• Overview of Healthcare Policy in Mercy Miami Hospital
• Healthcare Policy and Pfizer’s Nigeria Scandal
• Patient Good Nutrition as a Healthcare Policy
• Advocacy in Nursing: The Process of Healthcare Policymaking
• Malnutrition and Patient Safety Healthcare Policy
• Healthcare Policy Effects on Individuals: Affordable Care Act
• Occupational Health Paper Topics
• Affordable Care Act Essay Titles
• Government Regulation Titles
• Health Insurance Research Topics
• Pharmacy Research Ideas
• Nursing Theory Questions
• Obamacare Questions
• Alcohol Abuse Paper Topics
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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Call for Applications: The 2024 Essay Competition on the topic “Digitalization of Armed Conflicts”

• Republic of Moldova
• Learning and teaching IHL
• New technologies and warfare
• Cyber and information operations

The International Committee of the Red Cross in the Republic of Moldova (ICRC) is proud to announce an essay competition on the theme Digitalization of Armed Conflicts . The competition seeks to spotlight that, applied in the spirit in which they were designed to protect and function, the Geneva Conventions can rise to the modern challenges of today’s armed conflicts.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, a moment of recommitment towards IHL. The Geneva Conventions were adopted in 1949 and are now universally ratified. They represent a universal acknowledgement that war needs rules to limit its devastating impact. In an often-divided world, when parties respect the law, lives are saved, humanitarian actors are enabled to provide aid to affected populations and the principle of humanity is upheld. 

At the same time, new challenges such as cyber warfare have become reality in contemporary armed conflicts. We, therefore, encourage students to approach the topic from various perspectives, such as: What are the ethical challenges of using cyber operations in warfare? How can technology be used responsibly in armed conflicts so as to ensure civilian safety? How can the global community work together to reduce the risks of cyber warfare? How does international humanitarian law protect humanitarian workers from cyber warfare? How can media reporting on military cyber operations help raise awareness about civilian risks during armed conflicts? These are examples, and participants are welcome to choose one of these questions or explore other related topics in their essays.

In today’s world, that is increasingly polarized and where international commitments are being challenged, the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law embody universal humanitarian values that preserve lives and dignity. What the world needs more than ever is a more robust adherence to the Geneva Conventions. This is where the students of today - the future generations of professionals - step in. We at the ICRC support the students in exploring, engaging and debating with the ethical and humanitarian issues arising from armed conflict so that they are able to play their role of re-affirming the enduring relevance of IHL, the deep-rooted respect for human dignity, both in peacetime and in the midst of armed conflict. Doris El Doueihy, Head of Delegation, ICRC, Chisinau

To participate, students must submit their essays along with a copy of their identification and proof of enrollment in a university programme (undergraduate or masters). These documents must be received by the ICRC Chisinau Delegation no later than 31 October 2024 at 23:59 . Submissions can be sent by email to [email protected] or by mail to Bulgara Str. 23, MD-2001, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova. Participation in the competition is individual, collective work is not accepted. Essays can be written in Romanian, Russian or English. Winners will be informed in the last week of November 2024 and invited for an awards ceremony scheduled for early December.

The winning entries will be selected by a panel of IHL experts chosen by the ICRC. Participants will be assessed on their logical arguments, the depth to which they develop their answers, structure and demonstrated knowledge of the subject matter. 

The winners will be notified by the end of November 2024 and invited to an awards ceremony. 

The 1 st prize essay:  an internship at the ICRC in Chisinau ;

The 2 nd prize essay:  a day spent at the ICRC in Chisinau and attendance of an ICRC event on IHL ;

The 3 rd prize essay:  ICRC IHL publications

Certificates of participation will be provided for all submissions that are not disqualified.  

Useful links to sources on the topic of the competition:

ICRC Report,  Protecting Civilians Against Digital Threats During Armed Conflict , September 2023

Humanitarian Law & Policy Blog,  Foghorns of War: IHL and Information Operations During Armed Conflict , Tilman Rodenhauser and Samit D’Cunha, October 2023

Humanitarian Law & Policy Blog,  What We Don’t Understand About Digital Risks in Armed Conflict and What to Do About it , Rizk and Cordey, July 2023

ICRC Position Paper,  International Humanitarian Law and Cyber Operations during Armed Conflict , November 2019

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25+ Informative Speech Topics To Engage Your Audience

• The Speaker Lab
• September 1, 2024

Table of Contents

A well-chosen topic is key. Not only does it hook your audience from the start, but it also ensures they’ll remember what you said long after. With so many possibilities, however, where do you even begin? Picking a speech topic can be difficult, but if you’re looking for informative speech topics , look no further. We’ve compiled a list of informative speech topics spanning a wide range of categories, from technology and social media to psychology and mental health. Each one has been chosen carefully so that your audience will learn loads while staying entertained. Whether you’re passionate about green living or sports, there’s a topic out there that’ll catch your attention and spark conversations.

What is an Informative Speech?

The main goal of an informative speech is to educate your audience about a specific subject. Accordingly, you want to present the information in a way that’s easy to understand and remember. Depending on your topic and goal, you can choose to speak on objects, processes, events, or concepts. Whatever type of informative speech you choose, just make sure it aligns with your audience’s interests and needs.

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Key Elements of an Informative Speech

To deliver an effective informative speech, there are a few key elements to keep in mind:

• Choose a clear, specific topic
• Conduct thorough research using credible sources
• Organize your speech in a logical, easy-to-follow structure
• Use engaging language and delivery techniques
• Conclude with a strong summary of your main points

By incorporating these elements into your speech writing process, you’ll be well on your way to delivering an informative and memorable speech.

How to Choose an Informative Speech Topic

Now that you know the basics of informative speeches, it’s time to choose your topic. But with so many options out there, where do you even begin? Don’t stress—we’ve got some tips to help you narrow down your choices and find the perfect informative speech topic.

Brainstorming Ideas

The first step in choosing a topic is to brainstorm potential ideas. Think about your interests, hobbies, and areas of expertise. What topics do you find fascinating? What do you want to learn more about? Jot down any and all ideas that come to mind, no matter how silly or far-fetched they may seem. After all, you never know what might spark inspiration for a great speech topic.

Narrowing Down Your Options

Once you have a list of potential topics, it’s time to start narrowing them down. Consider factors like the length of your speech, your audience’s interests and background knowledge, and the amount of research required for each topic.

Try to choose a topic that’s specific enough to cover in depth, but not so narrow that you’ll struggle to find enough information. And don’t be afraid to think outside the box—sometimes the most unique and creative informative speech topics are the most engaging.

Considering Your Audience

Your audience should always be at the forefront of your mind when choosing a speech topic. What do they want to learn about? What will capture their attention and keep them engaged? Consider factors like age, background, and interests when selecting your topic. You want to choose something that will resonate with your audience and leave them feeling informed and inspired.

Researching Your Topic

Once you’ve settled on a topic, it’s time to start researching. Look for credible sources like academic journals, reputable news outlets, and expert interviews to gather information and statistics. As you research, take notes and organize your findings into an outline. This will help you structure your speech and ensure you cover all the key points. Remember, the more knowledgeable you are about your topic, the more confident and engaging you’ll be when delivering your speech. So don’t skimp on the research phase.

Informative Speech Topics About Education

Education is a topic that affects us all, making it a great choice for an informative speech. Whether you’re passionate about bilingual education, curious about the pros and cons of online classes, or interested in the importance of physical education, there are plenty of angles to explore.

Some potential education-related informative speech topics include:

• The history of education in America
• The benefits and challenges of homeschooling
• The role of technology in modern education
• The importance of early childhood education
• The debate over standardized testing in schools

No matter which topic you choose, make sure to back up your points with research and statistics. And don’t be afraid to share your own experiences and opinions. After all, an informative speech is a great opportunity to educate and inspire your audience.

Psychology and Mental Health Informative Speech Topics

When it comes to informative speech topics about psychology and mental health, there’s no shortage of fascinating subjects to explore. From the inner workings of the human mind to the impact of mental well-being on our daily lives, this field offers a wealth of insights and discoveries. For instance, did you know that regular exercise can have a profound effect on our psychological well-being ? Studies have shown that physical activity can help reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress, while also boosting self-esteem and cognitive function. If topics like these interest you, then you may consider giving an informative speech on psychology and mental health.

The Mind-Body Connection

The mind-body connection is another topic that’s ripe for exploration in an informative speech. Our thoughts, emotions, and beliefs can have a powerful impact on our physical health, and vice versa. For example, chronic stress has been linked to a range of health problems, from heart disease to digestive issues. Meanwhile, embracing activities such as mindfulness or meditating brings with it perks aplenty. Bettering our brains alongside our bodies is only the start.

Of course, no discussion of psychology would be complete without delving into the complexities of human behavior. When you look at the way we build friendships or decide what’s next, there’s always something new and exciting to talk about. Wondering what to discuss? We’ve got a handful of killer suggestions ready for your upcoming presentation.

• The psychology of persuasion
• The impact of birth order on personality
• The science of habit formation
• The role of empathy in social interactions

Informative Speech Topics on Social Issues and Human Rights

Social issues and human rights are another rich source of informative speech topics. Not only are they relevant, but these topics are also great at keeping your audience hooked.

One topic that’s been in the spotlight in recent years is the impact of social media on our lives. While platforms like Facebook and Twitter have undoubtedly brought people together in new ways, they’ve also raised concerns about privacy, addiction, and the spread of misinformation. An informative speech on this topic might explore the pros and cons of social media use, as well as strategies for using these platforms in a healthy and responsible way.

Another pressing social issue is the ongoing fight for human rights around the world. Countries around the world have countless stories of courage and resilience just waiting to be told. So if you’re wondering what to discuss, take a look at these suggestions.

• The history of the civil rights movement
• The impact of gender discrimination on women’s lives
• The challenges faced by refugees and asylum seekers
• The role of activism in promoting social change

Technology and Social Media Informative Speech Topics

Technology and social media are transforming the way we live, work, and communicate. As a result, these topics offer endless possibilities for informative speeches that educate and inspire.

One recent technological development has been the rise of artificial intelligence (AI). From self-driving cars to personalized medicine, AI is poised to revolutionize nearly every aspect of our lives. If you chose to do an informative speech on AI, you could weigh the good against the bad—what amazing things AI can do for us and where it might trip us up.

Diving into another area, let’s talk about social media. In addition to the impact of social media on our personal lives, there’s also the question of how these platforms are shaping our political discourse and our society as a whole. Wondering what to discuss? We’ve got a handful of killer suggestions ready for your upcoming presentation.

• The role of social media in political campaigns
• The impact of online echo chambers on public opinion
• The ethics of social media data collection and use
• The potential for social media to promote social change

Environmental and Sustainability Informative Speech Topics

Environmental issues and sustainability are some of the most pressing challenges facing our world today. From climate change to plastic pollution, you’re never out of options for stirring speeches.

Climate change is, of course, a particularly urgent environmental topic. The scientific consensus is clear: By living the way we currently do, we’re pushing our planet’s temperature higher alarmingly quick, putting everything and everyone at risk. An informative speech on this topic might explore the causes and effects of climate change, as well as the steps we can take to mitigate its impact.

Other potential informative speech topics related to the environment and sustainability might include:

• The benefits of renewable energy sources like solar and wind power
• The impact of deforestation on biodiversity and climate change
• The problem of plastic pollution in our oceans and waterways
• The role of sustainable agriculture in feeding a growing population

No matter which topic you choose, an informative speech on psychology, social issues, technology, or the environment has the power to educate, inspire, and motivate your audience to take action. Dive into topics deeply and share what you find to spark change one reader at a time.

Unique and Creative Informative Speech Topics

Looking for a speech topic that’s a little out of the ordinary? Something that will really make your audience sit up and take notice? If so, you’ve come to the right place. Choosing a unique or creative topic is a surefire way to make your informative speech memorable. It’s a chance to showcase your personality and interests while still delivering valuable information. In addition, it’s just more fun to research and write about something a little offbeat. Below are a few creative ideas to get you going.

• Unusual holidays and festivals around the world
• The history and science behind a common food item (like chocolate or coffee)
• How a popular board game or toy is made
• The life and accomplishments of a little-known historical figure
• The psychology of optical illusions and how they trick our brains

The key is to find a topic that piques your curiosity and hasn’t been done to death. Dig deep into your hobbies, passions, and areas of expertise. Chances are, there’s a fascinating informative speech topic hiding in there somewhere. In fact, some of the best informative speeches are the ones that take a familiar topic and approach it from a completely new angle. For example, instead of giving a generic speech about the importance of recycling, you could focus on the surprising ways recycled materials are used in fashion or art.

The possibilities are endless. With a little creativity and research, you can craft a truly unique informative speech that will leave a lasting impression on your audience.

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Tips for Delivering an Engaging Informative Speech

You’ve chosen the perfect informative speech topic, done your research, and written a great speech outline . Now comes the hard part: actually delivering the speech in front of an audience. Don’t worry, though, because we have your back.

Giving a great speech is all about preparation and practice. The more comfortable you are with your material, the more confident and engaging you’ll be on stage. Here are a few tips to help you deliver an informative speech that will keep your audience hooked from beginning to end.

Organizing Your Speech

The structure of your speech is just as important as the content itself. A well-organized informative speech has a clear beginning, middle, and end. Start with an attention-grabbing introduction that previews your main points. Use the body of your speech to dive deeper into each point, using examples and stories to illustrate your ideas. Finally, wrap things up with a memorable conclusion that reinforces your key takeaways.

Using Visual Aids

Visual aids like slides, charts, or props can be a great way to enhance your informative speech and make complex topics more accessible. Just be sure to use them sparingly and strategically. Too many visuals can be distracting, so choose ones that really drive home your main points. And always have a backup plan in case of technical difficulties.

Connecting with Your Audience

At the end of the day, the goal of any informative speech is to educate and engage your audience. To do that, you need to find ways to make your topic relatable and relevant to their lives. Use examples and anecdotes that resonate with their experiences. Make eye contact, smile, and use gestures to convey your enthusiasm for the subject. And don’t be afraid to inject a little humor or personality into your delivery.

Practicing and Refining Your Delivery

The old saying “practice makes perfect” definitely applies to public speaking . The more you rehearse your informative speech, the more natural and polished your delivery will become. Practice in front of a mirror, record yourself on video, or grab a friend to be your audience. Pay attention to your pacing, clarity, and body language . And don’t forget to time yourself to make sure you’re staying within the allotted time limit.

Remember, delivering a great informative speech is a skill that anyone can learn with a little practice and preparation. So take a deep breath, trust in your abilities, and go out there and crush it.

FAQs About Informative Speech Topics

What are the 5 useful topics of an informative speech.

Consider technology trends, mental health awareness, climate change impacts, historical events analysis, and modern educational methods for engaging speeches.

What is a good informative speech?

A good one dives deep into facts and insights without trying to sway opinions. It’s clear, precise, and keeps listeners hooked.

What is an appropriate topic for an informative speech about a concept?

The evolution of artificial intelligence presents a rich ground to explore concepts ranging from ethics to its societal impact.

Which topic is best for speech?

Pick something you’re passionate about. If it sparks your interest, chances are high it’ll engage your audience too.

To truly master an informative speech, you have to get excited about your chosen subject. Spend ample time researching every nook and cranny then wrap it up by enthralling everyone through compelling narratives peppered with interesting tidbits. Use the informative speech topics we’ve shared with you and you’re all set to create a presentation that not only shares knowledge but also keeps your audience hooked and leaves them thinking.

So, whether you’re a student, professional speaker, or simply looking to enhance your public speaking skills, embrace the power of informative speeches. Choose a topic that ignites your curiosity, and watch as your words inspire and educate others.

• Last Updated: August 28, 2024

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Network Competition in the Airline Industry: An Empirical Framework

The Hub-and-Spoke network is a defining feature of the airline industry. This paper is among the first in the literature to introduce an empirical framework for analyzing network competition among airlines. Airlines make market entry decisions and choose flight frequencies in the first stage, followed by price competition to attract passengers in the second stage. A key feature of this model is the linkage between direct and indirect flights, which is described by a technological relationship (and estimated using data) that proxies the Hub-and-Spoke network. The paper estimates the marginal costs of serving passengers and operating flights using first-order conditions, bounds the entry costs using inequalities derived from the reveal-preference argument, and employs a state-of-the-art econometric method to conduct inference for entry cost parameters. Ignoring network externality underestimates the benefits of operating an additional flight by 13.2%, and airlines would schedule 21.53% fewer one-stop flights had they made flight operation decisions independently for each market. To evaluate the impact of a hypothetical merger, the paper proposes a novel equilibrium concept that makes it feasible to compute the industry equilibria. Counterfactual analyses indicate that a hypothetical merger between Alaska and Virgin America would increase consumer surplus as the merged airline would offer direct flights in 10% more markets while the overall post-merger price effect would likely be muted.

We thank the editor and anonymous referees whose comments significantly improved this paper. We are grateful to Victor Aguirregabiria, Heski Bar-Isaac, Dwayne Benjamin, Loren Brandt, Yanyou Chen, Andrew Ching, Rahul Deb, Mara Lederman, Yao Luo, Ismael Mourifi, Rob Porter, James Roberts, Marc Rysman, Xianwen Shi, Xiaoxia Shi, Eduardo Souza-Rodrigues, Junichi Suzuki, Yuanyuan Wan, Miaojun Wang, Mo Xiao, Daniel Xu, and seminar participants at Albany, Renmin University, Ryerson, Saskatchewan, Toronto, Western, Zhejiang University, CEA Annual Conference 2016, IIOC Annual Conference 2016, SHUFE IO Conference, EARIE Annual Conference 2016, and China Meeting for Econometric Society 2017 for helpful comments and discussions. We thank Siyu Chen and Jianjuan Chen for their computational support. All errors are our own. Zhe wants to acknowledge financial support from NSFC [Grants 72203202, 72192803 and 72141305]. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Bureau of Economic Research.

MARC RIS BibTeΧ

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Key things to know about U.S. election polling in 2024

Confidence in U.S. public opinion polling was shaken by errors in 2016 and 2020. In both years’ general elections, many polls underestimated the strength of Republican candidates, including Donald Trump. These errors laid bare some real limitations of polling.

In the midterms that followed those elections, polling performed better . But many Americans remain skeptical that it can paint an accurate portrait of the public’s political preferences.

Restoring people’s confidence in polling is an important goal, because robust and independent public polling has a critical role to play in a democratic society. It gathers and publishes information about the well-being of the public and about citizens’ views on major issues. And it provides an important counterweight to people in power, or those seeking power, when they make claims about “what the people want.”

The challenges facing polling are undeniable. In addition to the longstanding issues of rising nonresponse and cost, summer 2024 brought extraordinary events that transformed the presidential race . The good news is that people with deep knowledge of polling are working hard to fix the problems exposed in 2016 and 2020, experimenting with more data sources and interview approaches than ever before. Still, polls are more useful to the public if people have realistic expectations about what surveys can do well – and what they cannot.

With that in mind, here are some key points to know about polling heading into this year’s presidential election.

Probability sampling (or “random sampling”). This refers to a polling method in which survey participants are recruited using random sampling from a database or list that includes nearly everyone in the population. The pollster selects the sample. The survey is not open for anyone who wants to sign up.

Online opt-in polling (or “nonprobability sampling”). These polls are recruited using a variety of methods that are sometimes referred to as “convenience sampling.” Respondents come from a variety of online sources such as ads on social media or search engines, websites offering rewards in exchange for survey participation, or self-enrollment. Unlike surveys with probability samples, people can volunteer to participate in opt-in surveys.

Nonresponse and nonresponse bias. Nonresponse is when someone sampled for a survey does not participate. Nonresponse bias occurs when the pattern of nonresponse leads to error in a poll estimate. For example, college graduates are more likely than those without a degree to participate in surveys, leading to the potential that the share of college graduates in the resulting sample will be too high.

Mode of interview. This refers to the format in which respondents are presented with and respond to survey questions. The most common modes are online, live telephone, text message and paper. Some polls use more than one mode.

Weighting. This is a statistical procedure pollsters perform to make their survey align with the broader population on key characteristics like age, race, etc. For example, if a survey has too many college graduates compared with their share in the population, people without a college degree are “weighted up” to match the proper share.

How are election polls being conducted?

Pollsters are making changes in response to the problems in previous elections. As a result, polling is different today than in 2016. Most U.S. polling organizations that conducted and publicly released national surveys in both 2016 and 2022 (61%) used methods in 2022 that differed from what they used in 2016 . And change has continued since 2022.

One change is that the number of active polling organizations has grown significantly, indicating that there are fewer barriers to entry into the polling field. The number of organizations that conduct national election polls more than doubled between 2000 and 2022.

This growth has been driven largely by pollsters using inexpensive opt-in sampling methods. But previous Pew Research Center analyses have demonstrated how surveys that use nonprobability sampling may have errors twice as large , on average, as those that use probability sampling.

The second change is that many of the more prominent polling organizations that use probability sampling – including Pew Research Center – have shifted from conducting polls primarily by telephone to using online methods, or some combination of online, mail and telephone. The result is that polling methodologies are far more diverse now than in the past.

(For more about how public opinion polling works, including a chapter on election polls, read our short online course on public opinion polling basics .)

All good polling relies on statistical adjustment called “weighting,” which makes sure that the survey sample aligns with the broader population on key characteristics. Historically, public opinion researchers have adjusted their data using a core set of demographic variables to correct imbalances between the survey sample and the population.

But there is a growing realization among survey researchers that weighting a poll on just a few variables like age, race and gender is insufficient for getting accurate results. Some groups of people – such as older adults and college graduates – are more likely to take surveys, which can lead to errors that are too sizable for a simple three- or four-variable adjustment to work well. Adjusting on more variables produces more accurate results, according to Center studies in 2016 and 2018 .

A number of pollsters have taken this lesson to heart. For example, recent high-quality polls by Gallup and The New York Times/Siena College adjusted on eight and 12 variables, respectively. Our own polls typically adjust on 12 variables . In a perfect world, it wouldn’t be necessary to have that much intervention by the pollster. But the real world of survey research is not perfect.

Predicting who will vote is critical – and difficult. Preelection polls face one crucial challenge that routine opinion polls do not: determining who of the people surveyed will actually cast a ballot.

Roughly a third of eligible Americans do not vote in presidential elections , despite the enormous attention paid to these contests. Determining who will abstain is difficult because people can’t perfectly predict their future behavior – and because many people feel social pressure to say they’ll vote even if it’s unlikely.

No one knows the profile of voters ahead of Election Day. We can’t know for sure whether young people will turn out in greater numbers than usual, or whether key racial or ethnic groups will do so. This means pollsters are left to make educated guesses about turnout, often using a mix of historical data and current measures of voting enthusiasm. This is very different from routine opinion polls, which mostly do not ask about people’s future intentions.

When major news breaks, a poll’s timing can matter. Public opinion on most issues is remarkably stable, so you don’t necessarily need a recent poll about an issue to get a sense of what people think about it. But dramatic events can and do change public opinion , especially when people are first learning about a new topic. For example, polls this summer saw notable changes in voter attitudes following Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race. Polls taken immediately after a major event may pick up a shift in public opinion, but those shifts are sometimes short-lived. Polls fielded weeks or months later are what allow us to see whether an event has had a long-term impact on the public’s psyche.

How accurate are polls?

The answer to this question depends on what you want polls to do. Polls are used for all kinds of purposes in addition to showing who’s ahead and who’s behind in a campaign. Fair or not, however, the accuracy of election polling is usually judged by how closely the polls matched the outcome of the election.

By this standard, polling in 2016 and 2020 performed poorly. In both years, state polling was characterized by serious errors. National polling did reasonably well in 2016 but faltered in 2020.

In 2020, a post-election review of polling by the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) found that “the 2020 polls featured polling error of an unusual magnitude: It was the highest in 40 years for the national popular vote and the highest in at least 20 years for state-level estimates of the vote in presidential, senatorial, and gubernatorial contests.”

How big were the errors? Polls conducted in the last two weeks before the election suggested that Biden’s margin over Trump was nearly twice as large as it ended up being in the final national vote tally.

Errors of this size make it difficult to be confident about who is leading if the election is closely contested, as many U.S. elections are .

Pollsters are rightly working to improve the accuracy of their polls. But even an error of 4 or 5 percentage points isn’t too concerning if the purpose of the poll is to describe whether the public has favorable or unfavorable opinions about candidates , or to show which issues matter to which voters. And on questions that gauge where people stand on issues, we usually want to know broadly where the public stands. We don’t necessarily need to know the precise share of Americans who say, for example, that climate change is mostly caused by human activity. Even judged by its performance in recent elections, polling can still provide a faithful picture of public sentiment on the important issues of the day.

The 2022 midterms saw generally accurate polling, despite a wave of partisan polls predicting a broad Republican victory. In fact, FiveThirtyEight found that “polls were more accurate in 2022 than in any cycle since at least 1998, with almost no bias toward either party.” Moreover, a handful of contrarian polls that predicted a 2022 “red wave” largely washed out when the votes were tallied. In sum, if we focus on polling in the most recent national election, there’s plenty of reason to be encouraged.

Compared with other elections in the past 20 years, polls have been less accurate when Donald Trump is on the ballot. Preelection surveys suffered from large errors – especially at the state level – in 2016 and 2020, when Trump was standing for election. But they performed reasonably well in the 2018 and 2022 midterms, when he was not.

During the 2016 campaign, observers speculated about the possibility that Trump supporters might be less willing to express their support to a pollster – a phenomenon sometimes described as the “shy Trump effect.” But a committee of polling experts evaluated five different tests of the “shy Trump” theory and turned up little to no evidence for each one . Later, Pew Research Center and, in a separate test, a researcher from Yale also found little to no evidence in support of the claim.

Instead, two other explanations are more likely. One is about the difficulty of estimating who will turn out to vote. Research has found that Trump is popular among people who tend to sit out midterms but turn out for him in presidential election years. Since pollsters often use past turnout to predict who will vote, it can be difficult to anticipate when irregular voters will actually show up.

The other explanation is that Republicans in the Trump era have become a little less likely than Democrats to participate in polls . Pollsters call this “partisan nonresponse bias.” Surprisingly, polls historically have not shown any particular pattern of favoring one side or the other. The errors that favored Democratic candidates in the past eight years may be a result of the growth of political polarization, along with declining trust among conservatives in news organizations and other institutions that conduct polls.

Whatever the cause, the fact that Trump is again the nominee of the Republican Party means that pollsters must be especially careful to make sure all segments of the population are properly represented in surveys.

The real margin of error is often about double the one reported. A typical election poll sample of about 1,000 people has a margin of sampling error that’s about plus or minus 3 percentage points. That number expresses the uncertainty that results from taking a sample of the population rather than interviewing everyone . Random samples are likely to differ a little from the population just by chance, in the same way that the quality of your hand in a card game varies from one deal to the next.

The problem is that sampling error is not the only kind of error that affects a poll. Those other kinds of error, in fact, can be as large or larger than sampling error. Consequently, the reported margin of error can lead people to think that polls are more accurate than they really are.

There are three other, equally important sources of error in polling: noncoverage error , where not all the target population has a chance of being sampled; nonresponse error, where certain groups of people may be less likely to participate; and measurement error, where people may not properly understand the questions or misreport their opinions. Not only does the margin of error fail to account for those other sources of potential error, putting a number only on sampling error implies to the public that other kinds of error do not exist.

Several recent studies show that the average total error in a poll estimate may be closer to twice as large as that implied by a typical margin of sampling error. This hidden error underscores the fact that polls may not be precise enough to call the winner in a close election.

Other important things to remember

Transparency in how a poll was conducted is associated with better accuracy . The polling industry has several platforms and initiatives aimed at promoting transparency in survey methodology. These include AAPOR’s transparency initiative and the Roper Center archive . Polling organizations that participate in these organizations have less error, on average, than those that don’t participate, an analysis by FiveThirtyEight found .

Participation in these transparency efforts does not guarantee that a poll is rigorous, but it is undoubtedly a positive signal. Transparency in polling means disclosing essential information, including the poll’s sponsor, the data collection firm, where and how participants were selected, modes of interview, field dates, sample size, question wording, and weighting procedures.

There is evidence that when the public is told that a candidate is extremely likely to win, some people may be less likely to vote . Following the 2016 election, many people wondered whether the pervasive forecasts that seemed to all but guarantee a Hillary Clinton victory – two modelers put her chances at 99% – led some would-be voters to conclude that the race was effectively over and that their vote would not make a difference. There is scientific research to back up that claim: A team of researchers found experimental evidence that when people have high confidence that one candidate will win, they are less likely to vote. This helps explain why some polling analysts say elections should be covered using traditional polling estimates and margins of error rather than speculative win probabilities (also known as “probabilistic forecasts”).

National polls tell us what the entire public thinks about the presidential candidates, but the outcome of the election is determined state by state in the Electoral College . The 2000 and 2016 presidential elections demonstrated a difficult truth: The candidate with the largest share of support among all voters in the United States sometimes loses the election. In those two elections, the national popular vote winners (Al Gore and Hillary Clinton) lost the election in the Electoral College (to George W. Bush and Donald Trump). In recent years, analysts have shown that Republican candidates do somewhat better in the Electoral College than in the popular vote because every state gets three electoral votes regardless of population – and many less-populated states are rural and more Republican.

For some, this raises the question: What is the use of national polls if they don’t tell us who is likely to win the presidency? In fact, national polls try to gauge the opinions of all Americans, regardless of whether they live in a battleground state like Pennsylvania, a reliably red state like Idaho or a reliably blue state like Rhode Island. In short, national polls tell us what the entire citizenry is thinking. Polls that focus only on the competitive states run the risk of giving too little attention to the needs and views of the vast majority of Americans who live in uncompetitive states – about 80%.

Fortunately, this is not how most pollsters view the world . As the noted political scientist Sidney Verba explained, “Surveys produce just what democracy is supposed to produce – equal representation of all citizens.”

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Scott Keeter is a senior survey advisor at Pew Research Center .

Courtney Kennedy is Vice President of Methods and Innovation at Pew Research Center .

How do people in the U.S. take Pew Research Center surveys, anyway?

How public polling has changed in the 21st century, what 2020’s election poll errors tell us about the accuracy of issue polling, a field guide to polling: election 2020 edition, methods 101: how is polling done around the world, most popular.

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Strategic Defence Review 2024: call for evidence

The SDR will determine the roles, capabilities and reforms required by UK Defence to meet the challenges, threats and opportunities of the twenty-first century, deliverable and affordable within the resources available to Defence within the trajectory to 2.5%. The Review will ensure that Defence is central both to the security, and to the economic growth and prosperity, of the United Kingdom. The reviewers would like to take this opportunity to engage widely and seek public views. Your input is encouraged and is welcomed.

This call for evidence closes at 11:59pm on 30 September 2024

Call for evidence description

The UK faces threats that are growing and diversifying: war in Europe; conflict in the Middle East; states across the world that are increasingly acting in ways that challenge regional and global stability as well as our values and interests; terrorist groups; hybrid attacks; and instability caused by climate change.

Therefore, on 16 July 2024, the Prime Minister launched a Strategic Defence Review (SDR) to ensure the United Kingdom is both secure at home and strong abroad – now and for the years to come.

It is to be Britain’s review – not just the Government’s – so will consult serving military, veterans, MPs of all parties, industry, and academia.

The SDR will be headed by three external Reviewers in a first-of-its-kind for UK defence:

• Lord Robertson - Former Defence Secretary and NATO Secretary General (Review lead)
• Dr Fiona Hill CMG - Foreign policy expert and former US presidential advisor
• General Sir Richard Barrons – Former Commander Joint Forces Command and former Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff

This call for views sets out specific propositions to be answered that will help our team of reviewers. You are invited to provide responses to each of the propositions in the portal link no later than 30 September 2024. You will be allowed to submit up to 500 words per proposition. This should be submitted through this portal only . Please note you cannot submit a response more than once.

The Reviewers will report regularly on progress to the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Defence and will make their final report to the Prime Minister, the Chancellor and the Defence Secretary – with recommendations – in the first half of 2025.

Important Information

Strategic Defence Review 2024-2025: Terms of Reference

Defence Secretary speech at RUSI Land Warfare Conference 2024

Ways to respond

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