Searching the PA Genome (ComPASS) for Strategies, Externals, and Impacts

ComPASS is intended to help public administrators and other interested parties identify potentially useful strategies and their impacts in a particular situation (that is, under certain external conditions).

ComPASS actually is a repository of source cases (each in a separate wiki). The first step in the search process thus is to use the above right search box to find a case that matches your needs. Then click the associated link to get to the case itself.

Each case is representative of a causal network, with links between many of its variables (see the example case causal diagram). The variables can be thought of as divided into the three categories of strategies (options, decisions, alternatives, etc.), impacts (problems, goals, etc.), and externals (exogenous variables, etc.). Now imagine that the network can be displayed such that the strategies and externals are at the top and impacts in the middle and at the bottom.

The objective is to find a set of strategies to achieve a given impact and/or to find a set of important impacts for a given strategy (all in tune with the relevant external influences). There are many ways such a search can be undertaken. One way is through a process involving three steps:

(1) Do a key word search for the ComPASS variable most closely associated with the problem or potential (impact) at hand.

(2) Identify possible strategies and external forces by investigating variables that influence that impact (search "up" the network).

(3) Identify possible additional impacts from these by investigating variables that are influenced by a selected strategy and/or external force (search "down" the network).

Continue this process as needed.