Unpacking the multidimensional relationship between crisis and policy change
A systematic review
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12651979 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Giliberto Capano (0000-0003-3533-7407, Department of Political and Social Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna , Bologna, corresponding author), Laura Mastroianni (0000-0001-7651-0435, Department of Political and Social Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna , Bologna), Stefania Profeti (0000-0002-9418-2743, Department of Political and Social Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna , Bologna) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 14-32 |
| Publication date | 2025-10-28 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Policy and Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1449-4035 • E-ISSN: 1839-3373 |
| Publisher | Elsevier BV (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1093/polsoc/puaf041 |
| OpenAlex | W7127453306 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 51 |
This article presents a systematic review of how the relationship between crisis and policy change is conceptualized, operationalized, and analyzed in public policy literature. We analyze five dimensions: crisis definitions, the causal mechanisms linking crises to change, the types and intensities of change, the political and ideological effects, and the modes of governing crises. The review reveals persistent conceptual ambiguity, limited attention to political dynamics, and a dominant focus on ideational mechanisms. Furthermore, by adopting a typology of the politics of governing crises as an analytical tool, the study also identifies recurring patterns across mechanisms, political strategies, and outputs. This theory-informed review offers a foundation for systematic, comparative research on crisis-driven policy change
Focus (optics · Foundation (evidence · Ideology · Politics · Public policy · Typology · Unpacking · Disaster Management and Resilience · Policy Transfer and Learning · Public Policy and Administration Research
Systematic Reviews in the Social Sciences
The Politics of Crisis Management
Prisma-S
The Logic of Policy Change after Crisis
Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus
Politics in Time
Global Financial Crisis, Public Administration and Governance
Managing Transboundary Crises
Breaking Iron Triangles
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Portuguese healthcare reforms in the context of crisis
Ideas and Social Policy
Narrating Crisis
The Ghost of Crises Past
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The second wave of anti-feminism? Post-crisis maternalist policies and the attack on the concept of gender in Poland
The journal coverage of Web of Science and Scopus
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Growth Coalitions Within a Corporatist Setting
The Politics of Crisis Policymaking
Lagged Learning and the Response to Equilibrium Shock
Crises as driver of policy accumulation
Reconciling Perspectives on Blame Avoidance Behaviour
Understanding Policy Change Using a Critical Junctures Theory in Comparative Context
The Politics of Blame Avoidance
Paradigm Shifts and Policy Networks
Power through, over and in ideas
Crisis exploitation
Crisis situation and crisis policymaking
Context and Causal Mechanisms in Political Analysis
The Mechanisms of Policy Diffusion
Causal logics and mechanisms in policy design
Taking ideas and discourse seriously
Policy Paradigms, Social Learning, and the State
The Study of Critical Junctures
Increasing Returns, Path Dependence, and the Study of Politics
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Processes and Mechanisms of Democratization
Path dependence in historical sociology
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| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |