Journal article
Persistent policy pathways: inferring diffusion networks in the American States
American Political Science Review, Vol.109(2), pp.392-406
05/01/2015
DOI: 10.1017/S0003055415000040
Abstract
The transmission of ideas, information, and resources forms the core of many issues studied in political science, including collective action, cooperation, and development. While these processes imply dynamic connections among political actors, researchers often cannot observe such interdependence. One example is public policy diffusion, which has long been a focus of multiple subfields. In the American state politics context, diffusion is commonly conceptualized as a dyadic process whereby states adopt policies (in part) because other states have adopted them. This implies a policy diffusion network connecting the states. Using a dataset of 187 policies, we introduce and apply an algorithm that infers this network from persistent diffusion patterns. The results contribute to knowledge on state policy diffusion in several respects. Additionally, in introducing network inference to political science, we provide scholars across the discipline with a general framework for empirically recovering the latent and dynamic interdependence among political actors.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Persistent policy pathways: inferring diffusion networks in the American States
- Creators
- Bruce A DesmaraisJeffrey J HardenFrederick J Boehmke - University of Iowa, Political Science
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- American Political Science Review, Vol.109(2), pp.392-406
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- DOI
- 10.1017/S0003055415000040
- ISSN
- 0003-0554
- eISSN
- 1537-5943
- Number of pages
- 15
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 05/01/2015
- Description audience
- Academic
- Academic Unit
- Political Science; Public Policy Center (Archive)
- Record Identifier
- 9983766393602771
Metrics
297 Record Views