Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework
On the 40th anniversary of John Kingdon’s Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies, the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) is more vibrant than ever. In this contribution, we briefly summarize the development of the MSF from its inception to the present day. Next, we present three important theoreti...
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2024-12-01
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| Series: | International Review of Public Policy |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/irpp/4724 |
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| author | Reimut Zohlnhöfer Nicole Herweg |
| author_facet | Reimut Zohlnhöfer Nicole Herweg |
| author_sort | Reimut Zohlnhöfer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | On the 40th anniversary of John Kingdon’s Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies, the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) is more vibrant than ever. In this contribution, we briefly summarize the development of the MSF from its inception to the present day. Next, we present three important theoretical and methodological advances in the MSF over the past decade. Regarding theoretical advancements, we focus on (1) the application of the MSF to stages of the policy process following agenda-setting, (2) the transfer of the MSF to different institutional contexts, and (3) the development of new actor roles in MSF reasoning. In our discussion of methodological advancements, we highlight (1) the development of MSF hypotheses, (2) best practices for operationalizing the framework’s figurative concepts, and (3) suggestions for quantitatively testing individual aspects of MSF theorizing. We conclude by assessing that MSF research has addressed many criticisms from the literature (such as inconsistent operationalization of key concepts or story-telling rather than hypotheses-testing). However, scholars must also use these advancements and apply the framework rigorously to take advantage of the explanatory potential of the framework. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c5521e7a04e24be48fc94f96e7f6cf8d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2679-3873 2706-6274 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | OpenEdition |
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| series | International Review of Public Policy |
| spelling | doaj-art-c5521e7a04e24be48fc94f96e7f6cf8d2025-08-20T02:32:41ZengOpenEditionInternational Review of Public Policy2679-38732706-62742024-12-01610.4000/13gfyAlive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process FrameworkReimut ZohlnhöferNicole HerwegOn the 40th anniversary of John Kingdon’s Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies, the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) is more vibrant than ever. In this contribution, we briefly summarize the development of the MSF from its inception to the present day. Next, we present three important theoretical and methodological advances in the MSF over the past decade. Regarding theoretical advancements, we focus on (1) the application of the MSF to stages of the policy process following agenda-setting, (2) the transfer of the MSF to different institutional contexts, and (3) the development of new actor roles in MSF reasoning. In our discussion of methodological advancements, we highlight (1) the development of MSF hypotheses, (2) best practices for operationalizing the framework’s figurative concepts, and (3) suggestions for quantitatively testing individual aspects of MSF theorizing. We conclude by assessing that MSF research has addressed many criticisms from the literature (such as inconsistent operationalization of key concepts or story-telling rather than hypotheses-testing). However, scholars must also use these advancements and apply the framework rigorously to take advantage of the explanatory potential of the framework.https://journals.openedition.org/irpp/4724decision-makingpolicy entrepreneursMultiple Streams Frameworkpolicy processagenda-settingparliamentary systems |
| spellingShingle | Reimut Zohlnhöfer Nicole Herweg Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework International Review of Public Policy decision-making policy entrepreneurs Multiple Streams Framework policy process agenda-setting parliamentary systems |
| title | Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework |
| title_full | Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework |
| title_fullStr | Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework |
| title_full_unstemmed | Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework |
| title_short | Alive and Kicking at 40. From Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies to a Policy Process Framework |
| title_sort | alive and kicking at 40 from agendas alternatives and public policies to a policy process framework |
| topic | decision-making policy entrepreneurs Multiple Streams Framework policy process agenda-setting parliamentary systems |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/irpp/4724 |
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