LIST OF PANELS

A focus on the relational dimensions of public policy constitutes a key development in our field. Over the past decade, we have observed significant growth in the number and variety of studies of how networks of interactions and relationships take shape and impact policy. We now have robust conceptual and methodological foundations to guide us in understanding what relationality means, how it matters to policy processes and outcomes, and how we can analyse it (e.g., Bartels and Turnbull, 2020; Lejano & Kan, 2022; Selg et al., 2024; Wilson et al., 2024).
At the same time, relational public policy is not mainstream and continues to face fundamental divides. Relationships might be widely recognized as an important factor, but often in a substantialist and instrumental way – what we call relationalism. Fewer scholars operate from a relational mindset that sees the world as interactive, dynamic, and emergent, or seek to transform relational dynamics towards greater democracy, social justice, and sustainability. In addition, the topic of relationality seems to be taken up mainly by scholars from Europe and the U.S., whereas it would seem that diversifying this community (e.g., across the Global South) would have great potential to challenge and expand our understanding of the meaning, impact, and analysis of relationality. Finally, there continues to be a need for greater interaction between scholars who have embraced relationality and practitioners who have been advancing a relational reform agenda.
The aims of this panel are to:

1. Trace the development of relational public policy over the past years;
2. Increase inclusion and synergies across conceptual, methodological and geographical boundaries;
3. Set an agenda for the future development of relational policy theory and practice.

We will build on discussions at panels at ICPP 2019 and 2021 about relational public policy. These discussions surfaced diverse relational approaches, opportunities for conceptual and methodological cross-fertilization, and ways to evaluate and co-produce relational change. We aim to break new ground in advancing relational public policy by critically exploring possibilities for further developing shared language, mutual understanding, and common goals (Bartels et al., 2024). It is our ambition to develop a special issue from the panel that will serve as a stimulus for and key reference point in the development of relational public policy.

References

Bartels, K.P.R., & Turnbull, N. (2020). Relational public administration: A synthesis and heuristic classification of relational approaches. Public Management Review, 22(9), 1324–1346.

Bartels, K.P.R., Von Heimburg, D., Jordan G. & Ness, O. (2024). Debate: A relational agenda for changing public administration research and practice, Public Money & Management, DOI: 10.1080/09540962.2024.2402873

Lejano, R.P. & Kan, W.S. (2022). Relationality. The Inner Life of Public Policy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Selg, P., Sootla, G. & Klasche, B. (2024) A Relational Approach to Governing Wicked Problems: From Governance Failure to Failure Governance. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.

Wilson, R., French, M., Hesselgreaves, H., Lowe, T., & Smith, M. (2024). New development: Relational public services—reform and research agenda. Public Money & Management, 44(6), 553–558.

Given the great diversity of relational approaches, we take a broad and inclusive view of what constitutes a relational approach at a conceptual, methodological and normative level. We welcome papers that illustrate diverse approaches at an empirical level and reflect on their added value at an analytical and practical level. We particularly invite papers that focus on relationality from diverse contexts, including the Global South. In conjunction with the panel aims, we expect papers to discuss:

How and where the research fits into the emerging field of relational public policy and its development;

What potential this recent work offers to challenge extant assumptions about the policy process and generate new synergies across conceptual, methodological and geographical boundaries

How a relational perspective helps us analyse/understand unresolved or anomalous policy situations

In which ways the research and researchers contribute to a shared agenda for the future development of relational public policy.

Interested scholars can contact co-chairs, Raul Lejano (lejano@nyu.edu), Nick Turnbull (Nick.Turnbull@manchester.ac.uk), and Koen Bartels (k.p.r.bartels@bham.ac.uk) prior to submitting paper proposals.