A policy summary is a short document that suggests a particular position or describes an objective policy issue and available options. You may have to write a policy summary for classwork or while working for a company or nonprofit organization. Policy briefs are usually less than 1,000 words and use facts and figures to tell a specific issue to readers who want a basic understanding.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Positioning Your Issue
Step 1. Identify your readers
Policy briefs are usually not read by experts in the field. Your potential readers are likely to be people who have a better understanding of the topic and want to understand the potential effects of certain policies.
- For example, if you are writing for a nonprofit organization, potential readers might be supporters of your organization. On the other hand, potential readers may also be government officials who disapprove of your message.
- If you are writing a policy summary for a class assignment, ask the professor or teacher to identify potential readers of the summary if this information is not mentioned in the job description.
Step 2. Create a realizable thesis statement
Like a research article, a thesis statement will help you organize your writing. Although brief, each paragraph should relate to the thesis statement.
- Due to their characteristics, policy summaries usually do not contain much background information. Your thesis statement must relate to a current issue or situation.
- For an advocacy summary, the thesis statement should provide a way to resolve the issues described in the summary. The thesis statement for an objective summary should describe an issue and describe the reasons behind the various suggestions offered to resolve the issue.
Step 3. Find the information needed to support your thesis
Policy briefs should be based on good research and planning. Each fact that you mention in the summary must be supported by reliable references.
- Use reliable sources, such as academic research or government data and statistics. Both will make your policy summary more trustworthy.
- Make sure the data and information you find relate directly to your thesis. Because it only has a few hundred words, you don't have enough space to describe studies on the topic in detail.
Step 4. Write a provisional draft based on the thesis statement
A draft policy summary can help you in the final stages of writing a summary. At this point, don't worry too much about the summary structure. You can fix it later.
Don't mind the length of the text. Write down what you think is necessary. It's easier to subtract than to add
Step 5. Use an inverted outline to make the draft sharper
Once you have a draft, read and note the main points of each paragraph. Use notes to create an outline. Adjust your focus when needed. With the help of the outline, it will be easy to identify paragraphs that are not coherent with the overall policy summary.
- View the outline you have created and change the order of the paragraphs as needed. Your narrative should flow logically from one paragraph to the next.
- Use transitions when needed to make the summary cohesive, not just a collection of paragraphs or sections.
Tip:
If you're having trouble sharpening your draft, talk to people whose opinions you value. It's okay if they don't understand the topic you're writing about– you're just looking for a way to get the policy summary to go where you want it to be.
Part 2 of 3: Building a Structure
Step 1. Write a summary statement to open your policy summary
The summary statement will appear on the summary cover or at the top of the first page if you don't use a cover. Use it to conclude your proposed thesis and policy statements.
For example, you write a summary about voluntary euthanasia, and argue that it is legal. For a summary statement, you might write: “People who are terminally ill want to die with dignity and independence. Voluntary euthanasia is an option to control their deaths.”
Step 2. Explain why this issue is important to the reader
Use the summary introduction to explain why the reader should care about this. Always consider the reader, especially if your reader is antagonistic.
Suppose you write about voluntary euthanasia addressed to MPs who disagree with this measure. In the introduction, you might write: “Everyone has the right to die with dignity. For people who have no life expectancy, this can only happen if euthanasia is legalized. Supporting euthanasia means supporting a person's freedom at the end of his life."
Step 3. Create titles for the main sections
These headings will divide the text and help readers find and read the passages that interest them. Use an active phrase with two or three words that sums up the content of the passage.
- For example, if you are writing about voluntary euthanasia, you might create headings, such as “Respect for Freedom”, “Maintaining Dignity”, and “Managing Costs”.
- For policy summaries, section headings allow the reader to start at several points. They don't need to read cover to cover. They can immediately concentrate on the things that interest them.
Step 4. Close with a conclusion and action request
Especially for an advocacy summary, you want to encourage readers to take action that supports your solution. Summarize what they have learned from the information you provided in the summary, then encourage them to take action. In this section, pay attention to the readers.
For example, if you are writing a voluntary euthanasia policy summary for government officials, encourage them to write or promote regulations that legalize voluntary euthanasia. On the other hand, if your readers are citizens, you want them to elect representatives of the people who support the legalization of voluntary euthanasia
Tip:
Word processing apps have templates you can use to polish your policy summary. These templates will make your policy summary design eye-catching, clean, and tidy.
Part 3 of 3: Writing Effectively
Step 1. Concentrate on results and conclusions rather than methods
The short policy brief leaves no place to describe the methodology used in the research. Instead of entering details about the raw data, highlight the conclusions of the research or statistics you used.
Use phrases, such as "a study found" or "statistics show" to open a conclusion. Write your references at the end of the summary. Readers can look at the research you cite if they want to understand the methods used
Step 2. Use clear and simple language
The policy summary should use active voice and common terminology to convey the message. Use relatively short sentences and communicate key concepts in words that are easy for everyone to understand.
As much as possible avoid technical terminology. If you must use it, provide a short description or definition after the technical word or phrase
Step 3. Add graphics and images to make it easier for readers
Graphs, charts, and tables make summaries easier for readers to understand. These images allow readers to quickly understand the policy summary without having to read the text in it.
All images must relate directly to the thesis statement. Imagine that someone only reads the title and subtitle, but can understand the summary when viewing the image you present
Step 4. Connect the findings to the wider situation
Policy briefs are only useful when they are relevant to the wider situation. Show how the issue you raise has far-reaching implications that may be related to the area or impact of other issues.
For example, if you are writing a policy summary on euthanasia, you could mention that critically ill patients leave high medical bills and this could be controlled if euthanasia was legalized
Step 5. Reread the policy summary carefully
Read from front and back. Make sure there are no spelling and sentence structure mistakes. You can also read it aloud. The part that keeps you from reading may need to be fixed to make it smoother.
Policy summaries are short so that even minor mistakes will stand out. Spelling and sentence structure errors will make your summary appear less trustworthy
Tip:
If you write in English, there are apps you can download for free to help correct your writing. Grammarly can help edit active sentences. The Hemingway app can also help you write active sentences and tailor your feedback based on your specific reading skill level.
