Reconciling Incrementalism with Policy Change. The Punctuated Equilibrium Theory in Political Science

Journal Title: Athenaeum. Polskie Studia Politologiczne - Year 2015, Vol 0, Issue 48

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explain current definition and application of punctuated equilibrium theory, which is as influential as any conceptual framework concerning policy process in political science, stimulating thought and research over the last two decades. Baumgartner and Jones borrowed the concept from studies of the evolution of species, but – as author shows – without operationalized definition, and turned it into a metaphor that can have mostly pedagogical use. Author explains how punctuated equilibrium is useful for analyzing policy change in political systems other than the United States, but in the European political systems, political parties and their preferences must be taken into account. It is also presented how punctuated equilibrium is in fact a much-improved version of the incrementalism theory, rather than an application of biological insights to politics. Author differentiate successful application of the punctuated equilibrium in the description of the policy process from the explanation of Baumgartner and Jones about how those identified patterns in modern democracies were caused.

Authors and Affiliations

Tomasz Czapiewski

Keywords

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  • EP ID EP672148
  • DOI 10.15804/athena.2015.48.03
  • Views 132
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

Tomasz Czapiewski (2015). Reconciling Incrementalism with Policy Change. The Punctuated Equilibrium Theory in Political Science. Athenaeum. Polskie Studia Politologiczne, 0(48), 37-50. https://europub.co.uk/articles/-A-672148