Comparative Studies of Policy Agendas

Previously published as a special issue of the Journal of European Public Policy , this book draws on the insights of the existing literature on agenda setting and policy changes to explore the dynamics of attention allocation and its consequences. Attention is a crucial variable in understanding modern politics. Shifts in attention have dramatic consequences for both politics and policy decisions. This volume includes case studies of nine different political systems including the US, Canada, several European systems, and the EU itself. It asks the following questions: Which are the dynamics of agenda-setting in the EU? Which role do political parties play in attention allocation? What are the cross national differences in attention to health care? What role does science and expertise play in attention-allocation? What are the effects of political institutions? Comparative Studies of Policy Agendas will be of interest to students and scholars of policy analysis and public policy.

1. Frank R. Baumgartner, Christoffer Green-Pedersen, and Bryan D. Jones. Agenda-setting in Comparative Perspective2. Peter John (University of Manchester, UK). The Policy Agendas Project: a Review3. Sarah B. Pralle (Syracuse University, USA). Timing and Sequence in Agenda Setting and Policy Change: A comparative study of lawn care pesticide politics in Canada and the U. S.4. Erin Penner, Kelly Blidook and Stuart Soroka (all from McGill University, Canada). Legislative Priorities and Public Opinion: Representation of Partisan Agendas in the Canadian House of Commons5. Stefaan Walgrave (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Frédéric Varone (University of Geneva, Switzerland), and Patrick Dumont (University of Antwerp). Policy with or without Parties? A Comparative Analysis of Policy Priorities and Policy Change in Belgium, 1991-20006. Christoffer Green-Pedersen and John Wilkerson (University of Washington, USA). How Agenda-setting Attributes Shape Politics: Basic dilemmas, Problem Attention, and Health PoliticsDevelopments in the U. S. and Denmark7. Peter John. Explaining Policy Change: The Impact of the Media, Public Opinion and Political Violence on Urban Budgets in England8. Christian Breunig (University of Washginton, USA). The More Things Change, the More Things Stay the Same: A Comparative Analysis of Budget Punctuations9. Frank R. Baumgartner, Abel Francois (University of Paris I, France), and Martial Foucault (European University Institute, Florence Italy). Punctuated Equilibrium in the French Budgeting Process10. Arco Timmermans and Peter Scholten (both from University of Twente, Netherlands). The Political Flow of Wisdom: Science Institutions as Policy Venues in The Netherlands11. Sebastiaan Princen (University of Utrecht, Netherlands) and Mark Rhinard (Swedish Institute of International Affairs, Stockholm Sweden). Crashing and Creeping: Agenda Setting Dynamics in the European Union