LIST OF WORKSHOPS

WORKSHOP CHAIRS:

P. HASSENTEUFEL, W. DUNN, C. ANSELL & P. ZITTOUN

Although constructivist and pragmatist approaches have a long history in the social sciences, especially in sociology, they continue to be poorly represented in the public policy literature. Ironically, the pragmatist approach had a major impact on the founding of public policy studies through its  influence on Harold Lasswell (Dunn, 2019). A core idea of pragmatism is that the best way to understand concepts is not to define them, but to observe them "in action," a perspective that connects pragmatism to social constructivism and its focus on problem framing and agenda-setting. Taking the two perspectives together suggests that policy scholars need to observe the definitional work of actors in order understand policy processes.

Our objective is not to reduce the diversity of either constructivist and/or pragmatist approaches but rather to explore how their combined insights might further illuminate the policy process. By bringing together researchers who work in both pragmatist and constructivist traditions, the workshop hopes to foster fruitful discussions and debates that could stimulate new international perspectives on public policy. 

In contrast with positivist approaches that stress variable-centered explanations of the policy process, pragmatist and constructivist approaches tend to adopt an interpretive mode of explanation that stresses  the reflexivity of policy actors as they “define the situation” and engage in policy action.  Both traditions focus on the central role of communication and signs, meaning and discourse in setting agendas, shaping collective identities, and create understanding of public and private value. In seeking to develop this agenda, the workshop welcomes researchers who are interested in drawing broadly on the intellectual resources of pragmatist and social constructivist traditions in the social sciences.

This workshop has an ambition to bring together pragmatism and constructivism to articulate a new approach to the policy process. To do so, the workshop seeks to highlight fundamental questions about the theoretical, conceptual and methodological foundations of this approach.  However, the workshop also welcomes empirical research that investigates how processes of problem definition and public debate shape policy processes, particularly where they illuminate the role of power and domination.

This workshop investigates how pragmatist and constructivist approaches might be combined to produce a more powerful analytical framework for public policy studies.  The goal is to identify the distinctive assets and advantages of these approaches for understanding public policy.

In contrast with positivist approaches that stress variable-centered explanations of the policy process, pragmatist and constructivist approaches tend to adopt an interpretive mode of explanation that stresses the reflexivity of policy actors as they “define the situation” and engage in policy action.  The workshop will focus on how we can interpret how policy actors build their definition of society, including problems, solutions, identities, strategies and relationships. The specific aim is to explore whether there is a useful amalgam of pragmatism and constructivism that combines their strengths in understanding the policy process.

The workshop is open to theoretical, methodological or empirical papers. Theoretically, the workshop welcomes papers that explore how the traditions of pragmatism and/or constructivism provide intellectual resources for understanding policy processes.   Methodologically, paper proposals exploring how to conduct policy analysis from one or both of these perspectives would be especially welcome. Empirically, the workshop would particularly value papers investigating processes of  collective action in support of problem definitions or policy proposals.

The workshop aims to bring together researchers who draw on pragmatist and/or constructivist approaches in order to engage in fruitful discussions and debates that might stimulate new insights into the policy process. 

P. HASSENTEUFEL, W. DUNN, C. ANSELL & P. ZITTOUN

Although constructivist and pragmatist approaches have a long history in the social sciences, especially in sociology, they continue to be poorly represented in the public policy literature. Ironically, the pragmatist approach had a major impact on the founding of public policy studies through its  influence on Harold Lasswell (Dunn, 2019). A core idea of pragmatism is that the best way to understand concepts is not to define them, but to observe them "in action," a perspective that connects pragmatism to social constructivism and its focus on problem framing and agenda-setting. Taking the two perspectives together suggests that policy scholars need to observe the definitional work of actors in order understand policy processes.

Our objective is not to reduce the diversity of either constructivist and/or pragmatist approaches but rather to explore how their combined insights might further illuminate the policy process. By bringing together researchers who work in both pragmatist and constructivist traditions, the workshop hopes to foster fruitful discussions and debates that could stimulate new international perspectives on public policy. 

In contrast with positivist approaches that stress variable-centered explanations of the policy process, pragmatist and constructivist approaches tend to adopt an interpretive mode of explanation that stresses  the reflexivity of policy actors as they “define the situation” and engage in policy action.  Both traditions focus on the central role of communication and signs, meaning and discourse in setting agendas, shaping collective identities, and create understanding of public and private value. In seeking to develop this agenda, the workshop welcomes researchers who are interested in drawing broadly on the intellectual resources of pragmatist and social constructivist traditions in the social sciences.

This workshop has an ambition to bring together pragmatism and constructivism to articulate a new approach to the policy process. To do so, the workshop seeks to highlight fundamental questions about the theoretical, conceptual and methodological foundations of this approach.  However, the workshop also welcomes empirical research that investigates how processes of problem definition and public debate shape policy processes, particularly where they illuminate the role of power and domination.

Patrick Hassenteufel is Professor of political science at the University of Versailles-Paris Saclay and researcher at Printemps (CNRS research center). His main research interests are actor-centered approaches for the comparative study of policy changes, mainly in the fields of health, social security and economic policies. Some of his recent publications are “From Policy Analytical Styles to Policy Making Styles” (co-authored with P. Zittoun), in M. Brans, I. Geva-May and M. Howlett (eds.), Routledge Handbook of Comparative Policy Analysis, Routledge, 2017; Policy Analysis in France (coedited with C. Halpern and P. Zittoun), Bristol, The Policy Press, 2017; “The shaping of New State Elites. Healthcare policy making since 1981” (co-authored with W. Genieys), Comparative Politics, 2015; “Still the sound of Silence? Towards a new phase in the Europeanisation of Welfare State policies in France” (co-authored with B. Palier), Comparative European Politics, 2015. He is the co-editor in chief of Gouvernement et action publique and member of the board of the French Political Science Association (AFSP).

Philippe Zittoun is Research Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at LAET–ENTPE, University of Lyon, France and the General Secretary of the International Public Policy Association. His latest book on public policy is The Political Process of Policy-Making (2014, in French and English). He co-editor, with B. Guy Peters, of Contemporary Approaches to Public Policy (2016), and with Charlotte Halpern and Patrick Hassenteufel, Policy Analysis in France (forthcoming). His research focuses on the role of knowledge, discourse, and power on the policy process, which he supports with empirical studies on housing, transport, shale gas, and environmental policy. He is also an editorial board member of academic journals including Policy Studies, Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, Critical Policy Studies, and others.

William Dunn is Professor of Public Policy and author of policy papers, articles, and books, including Public Policy Analysis (1981) which is the first book to devote a full chapter to methods of problem structuring. The most recent 6th edition (2018) is translated into 6 languages and published by Routledge. He has also written numerous articles on problem structuring in policy analysis. An elected Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, he is a recipient of Douglas McGregor, Aaron Wildavsky, and Donald T. Campbell awards for methodological innovation. Most recently he received the University of Pittsburgh's Provost’s Award for Excellence in Mentoring. He is a former Peace Corps Volunteer (Senegal I).

Christopher Ansell is Professor of Political Science at the University of California-Berkeley. His fields of interest include public policy, public administration, governance, and organization theory, with a geographical focus on Europe. He also studies the politics and management of risk and has an ongoing interest in public health and environmental policy. He is an author or editor of over ten books, including, with Jacob Torfing, Public Governance as Co-creation (Cambridge University Press, 2021), The Protective State (Cambridge University Press, 2019), and with Martin Bartenberger, Pragmatism and Political Crisis Management (Edward Elgar 2019).