LIST OF PANELS

Thinking about policy tools has changed over the past few years as a new emphasis has been placed on tools such as nudging, co-production and a variety of digital tools such as crowd-sourcing and Big Data analysis. These developments have challenged existing models and practices and it is time to review theory and modelling around policy tools in light of these new efforts.

This set of panels will examine early models and modes of thinking about policy tools in light of case studies and comparative work dealing with a variety of new actions in this field. These include macro-level practices and analyses of tools including thinking about "meta tools" like The relationship between tools and “platforms”: that is, specific kinds of ‘meta-tools’ which are open-ended and multi-functional and provide the foundation for the use of other more directed tools, and presentation and analysis of existing and new empirical evidence on administrator, public and political behaviour around choices of policy tools. And they include meso-level studies of policy mixes including related issues in their evolution such as sequencing, layering, stretching and patching as well as studies focusing on the nature and uses of “procedural tools” and their role in policy designs and problems around tools like information provision and public participation. And they will also include papers dealing with more micro-level developments including problems and thinking around implementation such as tool calibrations, their design implications and how they affect policy change and Tool 'volatility' – that is, the likelihood and ease with which a tool can be gamed/violated by targets or implementors and its design implications, as well as studies focusing on the nature of the mechanisms that tools activate in order to affect target behaviour: that is, why tools actually 'work' and why they are complied with.

This set of panels will examine early models and modes of thinking about policy tools in light of case studies and comparative work dealing with a variety of new actions in this field. These include:

1. Macro-level practices and analyses of tools including thinking about "meta tools" like the relationship between tools and “platforms”: that is, specific kinds of ‘meta-tools’ which are open-ended and multi-functional and provide the foundation for the use of other more directed tools, and presentation and analysis of existing and new empirical evidence on administrator, public and political behaviour around choices of policy tools.

2. Meso-level studies of policy mixes focusing on a): issues related to their evolution (such as sequencing, layering, stretching and patching) and composition (specific mixes between different types of substantive instruments); b) analyzing  the nature and uses of “procedural tools” and their role in policy designs and problems around tools like information provision and public participation.

3. Micro-level developments including: a) problems and thinking around implementation such as tool calibrations, their design implications and how they affect policy change and tool 'volatility' – that is, the likelihood and ease with which a tool can be gamed/violated by targets or implementors and its design implications; b) studies focusing on the nature of the mechanisms that tools activate in order to affect target behaviour: that is, why tools actually 'work' and why they are complied with.