The influence of religion and religious values in public policy making

The foundation of Public Policymaking in the West is on the tradition of liberalism, and religion is not given importance due to the existence of secular and non-religious governments, and religion is absent in policymaking. Infaring this field to religious countries, governments and societies, especially Iran, it becomes necessary to address the element of religion in Policy making. This issue has not been addressed and there is still a gap, and addressing that is article's purpose. The hypothesis stipulates that religion can also appear as an effective factor in the field of public policy and play a role in the success and failure of policies. To prove, the modern rational choice theory was used and by using the qualitative method in analyzing the impact of religion on the policy making process; by studying scientific books and articles. The findings indicate positive and negative effects on policies, depending on the level of attention and involvement of the religious factor by Policymakers. The result emphasizes the need for Policymakers to pay attention to this important factor in line with the theoretical foundations of the research in order to achieve more success and favorability in public policy making.