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A threat-centered theory of policy entrepreneurship

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  • Gwen Arnold

    (University of California Davis)

Abstract

We know relatively little about the conditions that encourage people to jump into the political fray as policy entrepreneurs, advocates who devote substantial time, energy, and resources to campaigning for a policy goal. This paper aims to fill that gap by investigating the catalysts of policy entrepreneurship in municipalities across the State of New York, where between 2008 and 2012, hundreds of local jurisdictions passed measures opposing or supporting high-volume hydraulic fracturing (fracking). These local policy actions were often enthusiastically encouraged and, in some cases, vociferously opposed, by enterprising advocates. I propose a threat-centered theory of policy entrepreneurship, emphasizing the role of loss aversion in pushing actors toward advocacy. The empirical analysis shows that oppositional advocacy within a polity draws would-be policy entrepreneurs into battle.

Suggested Citation

  • Gwen Arnold, 2022. "A threat-centered theory of policy entrepreneurship," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 55(1), pages 23-45, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:policy:v:55:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1007_s11077-021-09445-z
    DOI: 10.1007/s11077-021-09445-z
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    3. Gwen Arnold & Kaubin Wosti Neupane, 2017. "Determinants of Pro-Fracking Measure Adoption by New York Southern Tier Municipalities," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 34(2), pages 208-232, March.
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    6. W.R. Mack & Deanna Green & Arnold Vedlitz, 2008. "Innovation and Implementation in the Public Sector: An Examination of Public Entrepreneurship," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 25(3), pages 233-252, May.
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    8. Le Anh Nguyen Long & Megan Foster & Gwen Arnold, 2019. "The impact of stakeholder engagement on local policy decision making," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 52(4), pages 549-571, December.
    9. Fischer, Manuel & Ingold, Karin & Sciarini, Pascal & Varone, Frédéric, 2016. "Dealing with bad guys: actor- and process-level determinants of the “devil shift” in policy making," Journal of Public Policy, Cambridge University Press, vol. 36(2), pages 309-334, June.
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    12. Walsh, Patrick J. & Bird, Stephen & Heintzelman, Martin D., 2015. "Understanding Local Regulation of Fracking: A Spatial Econometric Approach," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association, vol. 44(2), pages 1-26, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Fredrik von Malmborg, 2024. "Strategies and Impacts of Policy Entrepreneurs: Ideology, Democracy, and the Quest for a Just Transition to Climate Neutrality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-51, June.
    2. Yi Yang, 2022. "The fable of policy entrepreneurship? Understanding policy change as an ontological problem with critical realism and institutional theory," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 55(3), pages 573-591, September.
    3. Gwen Arnold & Meghan Klasic & Changtong Wu & Madeline Schomburg & Abigail York, 2023. "Finding, distinguishing, and understanding overlooked policy entrepreneurs," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 56(4), pages 657-687, December.
    4. Nils C. Bandelow & Johanna Hornung & Ilana Schröder & Colette S. Vogeler, 2022. "Hydraulic fracturing, polarization, and environmental policy implementation," Review of Policy Research, Policy Studies Organization, vol. 39(4), pages 384-386, July.

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