The Routledge Handbook of Policy Styles

This Handbook provides a systematic overview of the study of policy styles provided by leading experts in the field.?

The book unites theoretical bases and advancements in practice, ranging from the fundamentals of policy styles to its place in greater policy studies, and responds to new questions regarding policy style dynamics across a range of government levels and activities, including contemporary trends affecting styles such as the use of digital tools and big data in government. It is a comprehensive reference for students and scholars of public policy.?

Key features:

• consolidates and advances the contemporary body of knowledge on policy styles and defines its distinctiveness within broader policy studies;?








• provides a detailed picture of national policy styles in a wide range of countries as well as insights concerning sectoral and other kinds of styles within countries, including executive styles and styles of policy advice;?








• systematically explores questions dealing with how policy styles impact policy goals, and the realization of policies, including how styles affect instruments choices and impact;








• provides a guide to future comparative research pathways and cross-sectoral dialogue on the concept and practice of policy styles.

The Routledge Handbook Policy Styles is essential reading and an authoritative reference for scholars, students, researchers and practitioners of public policy, public administration, public management as well as for comparative politics and government, public organizations and individual policy areas such as health policy, welfare policy, industrial policy, environmental policy, among others.

"Howlett and Tosun have brought together a leading collection of internationally renowned scholars to produce the definitive compendium on comparative policy styles. The volume provides a rich series of case studies and contrasting approaches to the way governments around the world identify policy options, articulate policy pathways and enact public policy to address vexed and complex policy problems."

Darryl S.L. Jarvis, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

"The concept of policy styles is an important approach to understanding public policies, especially from a comparative perspective. The concept has been used primarily to understand differences among countries, but this book extends the use of the concept to policy domains and to the policy process. This Handbook makes a major contribution to understanding how and why policies differ across countries and across policy areas."

B. Guy Peters, University of Pittsburgh, USA.