LIST OF PANELS

Public administrations worldwide face ever increasing pressures to develop new policy capacities in response to complex challenges. While substantial financial and human resources are invested in learning and development (L&D) programs to build these capacities, we lack systematic understanding of how such interventions transform policy capacities in practice. This set of panels examines the mechanisms through which different forms of learning initiatives contribute to policy capacity development in public administration.

The literature on policy capacities (Wu, Ramesh, Howlett 2015) has proposed frameworks for understanding analytical, operational, and political dimensions of capacity. Simultaneously, research on organisational learning and professional development has identified various mechanisms for capability building (e.g. Goah, Elliott, Quano 2012). These streams remain largely disconnected, however, leaving critical gaps in our understanding of how, and whether, learning interventions result in changed and improved policy capacity.

This set of panels responds to questions covering:

1.    Conceptual - How can we theorise the mechanisms through which L&D initiatives transform policy capacities? What different explanatory frameworks frame policy capacity development?

2.    Empirical – What evidence exists about the effectiveness of different learning interventions in developing policy capacities across various contexts? What conditions enable or constrain successful capacity development?

3.    Methodological – What innovative approaches can advance our understanding of how policy capacities are transformed through learning initiatives?

References

Goh, S. C., Elliott, C., & Quon, T. K. (2012). The relationship between learning capability and organizational performance: A meta‐analytic examination. The learning organization, 19(2), 92-108.

Wu, X., Ramesh, M., & Howlett, M. (2015). Policy capacity: A conceptual framework for understanding policy competences and capabilities. Policy and society, 34(3-4), 165-171.

We invite papers that advance either theoretical, empirical and/or methodological understanding of how learning and development initiatives transform policy capacities in public administrations. Contributions may address but are not limited to those proposed below.

Theoretical papers can include, for example:

·      Conceptual frameworks linking learning mechanisms to capacity outcomes.

·      Conceptual work linking organisational learning and policy capacities.

·      Critical analysis of assumptions underlying capacity development approaches.

·      Theoretical synthesis across individual learning, organisational learning, and policy capacity development literatures.

Empirical papers can include, for example:

·      Evaluations of formal training programs (e.g. MPA/MPP programs, professional education, short courses, long-term professional learning initiatives, etc)

·      Studies of informal learning mechanisms (mentoring, communities of practice)

·      Comparative studies of capacity development approaches

·      Longitudinal studies of policy capacity development and transformation

Methodological papers can include, for example:

·      Evaluation methodologies for capacity development impacts through learning

·      Innovative frameworks for analysing capacity transformation

·      Mixed-method approaches to evaluating learning-led policy capacity development

We particularly welcome papers that integrate learning and capacity development theories and practice; develop innovative conceptual and methodological approaches; and advance critical perspectives on current understanding of the relationships between learning and policy capacity transformation.