The Rise of ‘New’ Policy Instruments in Comparative Perspective: Has Governance Eclipsed Government?

Abstract

Governance is a term in good currency, but there are still too few detailed empirical analyses of the precise extent to which it has or has not eclipsed government. This article explores the temporal and spatial characteristics of the governance transition by charting the deployment of new policy instruments in eight industrialised states and the European Union. The adoption and implementation of (‘old’ and ‘new’) policy instruments offer a useful analytical touchstone because governance theory argues that regulation is the quintessence of government. Although there are many ‘new’ environmental policy instruments in these nine jurisdictions, this article finds that the change from government to governance is highly differentiated across political jurisdictions, policy sectors and even the main instrument types. Crucially, many of the new policy instruments used require some state involvement (that is, ‘government’), and very few are entirely devoid of state involvement (that is, pure ‘governance’). Far from eclipsing government, governance therefore often complements and, on some occasions, even competes with it, although there are some cases of fusion. Future research should thus explore the many complex and varied ways in which government and governance interact in public policy‐making.

How policy instruments are chosen: patterns of decision makers’ choices

“…Here, generally speaking, hybridization means the combination of different institutional logics. In this sense, the term is more specific than the generic use of hybrid type seen in policy instrument literature, where it is simply synonymous with ''mix'' (see: Gunningham and Grabosky 1998;Jordan et al 2005). …”

Local governments in the driving seat? A comparative analysis of public and private responsibilities for adaptation to climate change in European and North-American cities

“…Jordan, Wurzel, & Zito, 2005;Rhodes, 2007;Van Kersbergen & Waarden, 2004), in which power and authority are transferred from the government downwards and upwards to other levels of government, as well as outwards to private actors. This has resulted in the formation of new governance arrangements in which governments tend to have a steering rather than rowing role, although this is argued by some to be more of an ideal or normative prescription than that it reflects empirical reality (Arts, 2014;Capano, Howlett, & Ramesh, 2015;Jordan et al, 2005). The concept of governance is vague.…”

The changing winds of atmospheric environment policy

“…While some outcomes may be implemented at a local scale by a partnership of local stakeholders, other issues need the participation of the government agencies to provide the legitimacy, legal authority and resources for effective implementation (Jordan et al, 2005). Although in theory the new governance processes may be suitable to address complex issues involving many stakeholders and decision points, to date these arrangements have been more successful with relatively simple air pollution issues at a confined scale, for example local, with a small number of participants than those involving complex issues with unclear boundaries and many stakeholders (Gunningham, 2009b).…”