Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Conclusions: The Changing and Unchanging State

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Trajectories of Governance

Part of the book series: International Series on Public Policy ((ISPP))

  • 142 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter is the concluding chapter of the book. It first assesses the impact of neoliberalism on how States wield policy instruments and govern. The chapter emphasizes the need for nuance in understanding the substantial influence that neoliberalism has played as well as the continued importance of the State steering society. It then reflects on the importance of certain variables laid out in Chap. 1, in particular noting the importance of elections and institutions in shaping the state trajectory. The chapter builds on this analysis to assess the role of critical junctures and particular variables in shifting the policy sequences. It finishes by reflecting on the future of the State and proposing a future comparative public policy research agenda.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aalbers, M. B. (2013). Neoliberalism is dead … long live neoliberalism! International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 37(3), 1083–1090.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barnett, C., Clarke, N., Cloke, P., & Malpass, A. (2008). The elusive subjects of neo-liberalism: Beyond the analytics of governmentality. Cultural Studies, 22(5), 624–653.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Béland, D. (2009). Ideas, institutions, and policy change. Journal of European Public Policy, 16(5), 701–713.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Béland, D., & Schlager, E. (2019). Varieties of policy feedback research: Looking backward, moving forward. Policy Studies Journal, 47(2), 184–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Béland, D., Cantillon, B., Hick, R., & Moreira, A. (2021). Social policy in the face of a global pandemic: Policy responses to the COVID-19 crisis. Social Policy and Administration, 55(2), 249–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, A., & Checkel, J. (2015). Process tracing: From philosophical roots to best practices. In A. Bennett & J. Checkel (Eds.), Process tracing: From metaphor to analytical tool (pp. 3–39). Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Breton, A., Brosio, G., Dalmazzone, S., & Garrone, G. (2007). Environmental governance and decentralisation. Edward Elgar.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Capano, G., & Howlett, M. (2020). The knowns and unknowns of policy instrument analysis: Policy tools and the current research agenda on policy mixes. SAGE Open, 10(1). Retrieved March 21, 2022 from doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244019900568.

  • Capano, G., & Lippi, A. (2017). How policy instruments are chosen: Patterns of decision makers’ choices. Policy Sciences, 50(2), 269–293.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Capano, G., & Pritoni, A. (2019). Varieties of hybrid systemic governance in European higher education. Higher Education Quarterly, 73(1), 10–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carey, G., Kay, A., & Nevile, A. (2019). Institutional legacies and “Sticky Layers”: What happens in cases of transformative policy change? Administration and Society, 51(3), 491–509.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cashore, B., & Howlett, M. (2007). Punctuating which equilibrium? Understanding thermostatic policy dynamics in Pacific Northwest forestry. American Journal of Political Science, 51(3), 532–551.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Challies, E. R., & Murray, W. E. (2008). Towards post-neoliberalism? The comparative politico-economic transition of New Zealand and Chile. Asia Pacific Viewpoint, 49(2), 228–243.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chwieroth, J. M. (2007). Testing and measuring the role of ideas: The case of neoliberalism in the International Monetary Fund. International Studies Quarterly, 51(1), 5–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, L. (2020). The end of neoliberalism? Why the current crisis is different to 1989, 2001 and 2008. 24 June. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2020/06/24/the-end-of-neoliberalism-why-the-current-crisis-is-different-to-1989-2001-and-2008/

  • Coyne, C. J., & Yatsyshina, Y. (2020). Pandemic police states. Peace Economics, Peace Science and Public Policy, 26(3), Retrieved March 21, 2022, from doi:https://doi.org/10.1515/peps-2020-0021.

  • Daugbjerg, C. (2009). Sequencing in public policy: The evolution of the CAP over a decade. Journal of European Public Policy, 16(3), 395–411.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daugbjerg, C., & Kay, A. (2020). Policy feedback and pathways: When change leads to endurance and continuity to change. Policy Sciences, 53(2), 253–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flanagan, K., Uyarra, E., & Laranja, M. (2011). Reconceptualising the ‘policy mix’ for innovation. Research Policy, 40(5), 702–713.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flynn, B. (2020). The inexorable rise of the pandemic state? Second-guessing the long-term political repercussions of COVID 19. Irish Politics Forum, 18 March. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://politicalreform.ie/2020/03/18/the-inexorable-rise-of-the-pandemic-state-second-guessing-the-long-term-political-repercussions-of-covid-19/

  • Fukuyama, F. (1989). The end of history? The National Interest, 16(Summer), 3–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gerring, J. (2007). The mechanismic worldview: Thinking inside the box. British Journal of Political Science, 38(1), 161–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodwin, M. (2020). COVID-19 will reshape our relationship with the state. Chatham House blog, 12 May. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://www.chathamhouse.org/2020/05/covid-19-will-reshape-our-relationship-state

  • Green, M. (2007). Governing under advanced liberalism: Sport policy and the social investment state. Policy Sciences, 40(1), 55–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Häusermann, S. (2012). The politics of old and new social policies. In G. Bonoli & D. Natali (Eds.), The politics of the new welfare state (pp. 111–132). Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Higgins, V. (2001). Calculating climate: ‘Advanced liberalism’ and the governing of risk in Australian drought policy. Journal of Sociology, 37(3), 299–316.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holzinger, K., & Knill, C. (2005). Causes and conditions of cross-national policy convergence. Journal of European Public Policy, 12(5), 775–796.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howlett, M., & Rayner, J. (2006). Globalization and governance capacity: Explaining divergence in national forest programs as instances of “next-generation” regulation in Canada and Europe. Governance, 19(2), 251–275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howlett, M., & Rayner, J. (2007). Design principles for policy mixes: Cohesion and coherence in ‘new governance arrangements’. Policy and Society, 26(4), 1–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howlett, M., & Rayner, J. (2008). Third generation policy diffusion studies and the analysis of policy mixes: Two steps forward and one step back. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, 10(4), 385–402.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howlett, M., & Rayner, J. (2013). Patching vs packaging in policy formulation: Assessing policy portfolio design. Politics and Governance, 1(2), 170–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacques, M. (2016). The death of neoliberalism and the crisis in western politics. The Guardian, 21 August. Retrieved March 21, 2022 from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/21/death-of-neoliberalism-crisis-in-western-politics

  • Jensen, C., Arndt, C., Lee, S., & Wenzelburger, G. (2018). Policy instruments and welfare state reform. Journal of European Social Policy, 28(2), 161–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koppenjan, J., Karré, P., & Termeer, C. (2019). New governance arrangements. Towards hybrid and smarter government? In J. Koppenjan, P. M. Karré, & K. Termeer (Eds.), Smart hybridity: Potentials and challenges of new governance arrangements (pp. 11–28). Eleven International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lowi, T. J. (1964). American business, public policy, case-studies, and political theory. World Politics, 16(4), 677–715.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahoney, J. (2001). Beyond correlational analysis: Recent innovations in theory and method. Sociological Forum, 16(3), 575–593.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moran, M. (2001). Not steering but drowning: Policy catastrophes and the regulatory state. The Political Quarterly, 72(4), 414–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pierson, P. (1993). When effect becomes cause: Policy feedback and political change. World Politics, 45(4), 595–628.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pierson, P. (1994). Dismantling the welfare state? Reagan, Thatcher, and the politics of retrenchment. Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Pierson, P. (2000). Increasing returns, path dependence, and the study of politics. American Political Science Review, 94(2), 251–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rose, N. (1993). Government, authority and expertise in advanced liberalism. Economy and Society, 22(3), 283–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rose, N. (1996). Governing “advanced” liberal democracies. In A. Sharma & A. Gupta (Eds.), The anthropology of the state: A reader (pp. 144–162). Blackwell Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenbloom, D., Meadowcroft, J., & Cashore, B. (2019). Stability and climate policy? Harnessing insights on path dependence, policy feedback, and transition pathways. Energy Research and Social Science, 50, 168–178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rossouw, N., & Wiseman, K. (2004). Learning from the implementation of environmental public policy instruments after the first ten years of democracy in South Africa. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 22(2), 131–140.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saad-Filho, A. (2020). From COVID-19 to the end of neoliberalism. Critical Sociology, 46(4–5), 477–485.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shahjahan, R. A. (2016). International organizations (IOs), epistemic tools of influence, and the colonial geopolitics of knowledge production in higher education policy. Journal of Education Policy, 31(6), 694–710.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silva, P. (1991). Technocrats and politics in Chile: From the Chicago Boys to the CIEPLAN Monks. Journal of Latin American Studies, 23(2), 385–410.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sitaraman, G. (2019). The collapse of Neoliberalism. The New Republic, 23 December. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://newrepublic.com/article/155970/collapse-neoliberalism

  • Stenson, K., & Watt, P. (1999). Governmentality and ‘the death of the social’?: A discourse analysis of local government texts in south-east England. Urban Studies, 36(1), 189–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stiglitz, J. E. (2021). The proper role of government in the market economy: The case of the post-COVID recovery. Journal of Government and Economics, 1(100004), 1–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Šumonja, M. (2020). Neoliberalism is not dead–On political implications of Covid-19. Capital and Class, 45(2), 215–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tilly, C. (2001). Mechanisms in political processes. Annual Review of Political Science, 4, 21–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trubek, D., & Trubek, L. (2006). New governance and legal regulation: Complementarity, rivalry or transformation. Columbia Journal of European Law, 13(3), 539–564.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wong, F. (2020). The post-neoliberal world is already here. Democracy: A Journal of Ideas, 7 May. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/the-post-neoliberal-world-is-already-here/

  • Zito, A., Eckersley, S., & Turner, S. (2019). The instruments of European heritage. In C. Whitehead, S. Eckersley, M. Daugbjerg & G. Bozoğlu (Eds.), Dimensions of heritage and memory: Multiple Europes and the politics of crisis (pp. 50–71). Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Political & Social Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Giliberto Capano

  2. Department of Politics, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK

    Anthony R. Zito

  3. Political and Social Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Federico Toth

  4. School of Public Policy, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada

    Jeremy Rayner

Authors
  1. Giliberto Capano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Anthony R. Zito
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Federico Toth
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jeremy Rayner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giliberto Capano .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Capano, G., Zito, A.R., Toth, F., Rayner, J. (2022). The Conclusions: The Changing and Unchanging State. In: Trajectories of Governance. International Series on Public Policy . Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-07457-8_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation