This article presents illustrative findings from case study research investigating the function and effects of competing discourses in the policy change process. The specific field of research is the development and implementation of public housing policy in Queensland, Australia. Critical discourse analysis is used to explore discursive constructions of the policy problem and power relations within the policy community. It is argued that positivist approaches to policy analysis have failed to address the way in which policy language constructs welfare identities, legitimates policy interventions and functions as an important site of ideological struggle over the meaning of human services within the welfare state. These themes are discussed using semi-structured interview data and key policy documents collected during the course of research.
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