From Identity to the Economy
Analysing the Evolution of the Decentralisation Discourse
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 23345199 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Andrés Rodríguez-Pose (0000-0002-8041-0856, London School of Economics and Political Science), Richard Sandall (London School of Economics and Political Science) |
| Year | 2008 |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 54-72 |
| Publication date | 2008-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Environment and Planning C Government and Policy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0263-774X • E-ISSN: 1472-3425 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1068/cav2 |
| OpenAlex | W2093424292 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 65 |
| References cited | 43 |
Few global phenomena have been as pervasive over the lifetime of Government and Policy as the drive towards decentralisation. The number of countries transferring authority and resources to subnational tiers of government has multiplied over the last twenty-five years. Yet the motives behind this trend remain relatively unknown. We explore these motives by analysing changes in the decentralisation discourse across a number of countries. We find that, while arguments about democracy and good governance have been at the heart of the reasoning for decentralisation, identity has progressively been relegated in favour of the economy and the promise of an economic dividend as the other main motivating factor. However, this shift from identity to the economy is highly contingent on who is driving the process. Despite noticeable shifts towards economic arguments in the discourse of nationalist and secessionist movements, identity remains strong in bottom-up discourses. In contrast, it has almost disappeared—if it ever existed—when the process of decentralisation is undertaken by the state or is encouraged by international organisations.
Corporate governance · Decentralization · Democracy · Economic system · Economics · Government (linguistics) · Identity (music) · Market economy · Nationalism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · State (computer science) · Law · Local Government Finance and Decentralization · Political Systems and Governance · Social Policy and Reform Studies
Beyond Identities
Exploring regionalism in public management reforms
The Dutch Local Government Bailout Puzzle
Localism, Levelling Up and Taking Back Control
Postsowjetische Transformationen in der Weltgesellschaft
Cross-Border Metropolitan Integration in Europe
Divergence or Convergence? Devolution and Transport Policy in the United Kingdom
Does Nationalism Trigger Welfare-State Disintegration? Social Policy and Territorial Mobilization in Belgium and Canada
The state and uneven development
Is fiscal decentralization harmful for economic growth? Evidence from the OECD countries
The economic crisis in Europe
Does decentralization matter for regional disparities? A cross-country analysis
Regionalism
Disruptive Localism – How Far Does Clientelism Shape the Prospects of Neighbourhood Planning in Deprived Urban Communities
Addressing the impossible triad – high inequality, decentralized policy and low local capacity – challenges for drinking water policy in Mexico
The economic effects of political disintegration
Getting to Denmark
Pandemic response in rural Peru
Achievements and Issues of Geographical Studies on Decentralization
Fiscal decentralisation and local government efficiency
Democratic tensions in decentralised planning – Rhetoric, legislation and reality in England
National Identities in Troubled Times
Decentralization and the centre right in the UK and Spain
The moral community of redistribution
The Economics of Secession
Local development policy in a societal crisis
Rescaling Regional Identities
Two regionalisms, one mechanism
From concrete to abstract regional planning strategies in North West England
Public expenditure in time of crisis
Quality of government and regional resilience in the European Union. Evidence from the Great Recession
Are local public services better delivered in more autonomous regions? Evidence from European regions using a dose‐response approach
Decentralised development policy
Disaster risk reduction legislations
Market-based low-carbon retrofit in social housing
From thick to thin regional identities
Region and place I
Cost-efficiency of Japanese local governments
Iconic site development and legitimating policies
Putting Localism in Place
Municipalities
Regional governance in second-tier city-regions in Sweden
Trading borders
A Malmquist-Based Approach to Change in Local Economic Well-being
The Impact of Fiscal Decentralization on the Composition of Public Expenditure
Regional Planning and the Mobilization of ‘Regional Identity’
The ‘imaginary’ challenge of remaking subnational governance
Spatial planning, nationalism and territorial politics in Europe
Regional Variations in Public Service Outcomes
Reducing Costs in Times of Crisis
Rethinking the political economy of place
Invented traditions in Surakarta after decentralisation
Economic transition, industrial location and corporate networks
Making News
Are the normative rationales of local autonomy related to democratic legitimacy justified? Evidence from 57 countries in Europe and beyond (1990–2020)
Decentralisation advocacy and inter-government coordination
Unfunded Mandates and the Economic Impact of Decentralisation. When Finance Does Not Follow Function
The planners’ dream goes wrong?’ Questioning citizen-centred planning
Eurocentric Social Science and the Chinese Region
Decentralization and the Welfare State
Fiscal Decentralisation, Efficiency, and Growth
Crowding Out Development
Layering Spatial Identities
Decentralised forest management
Devolution, state restructuring and policy divergence in the UK
The Politics of Localization
New State Spaces
The Global Trend towards Devolution and its Implications
Making neo-liberal governance
Decentralizing antipoverty program delivery in developing countries
The Invention of Regions
The Geography of Ethnic Violence
Local Government Systems
The Global City
The Political Dynamics of Sub-State Regionalisation
Autonomy, devolution and intergovernmental relations
Rethinking the Region
Richard Nixon, State, and Party
Regions in revolt
Decoding Decentralisation
The Evolution of Regionalism in England
England and the 'New Regionalism
English Question
On the ‘economic dividend’ of devolution
India Against Itself
Devolution
Basque Nationalism between Archaism and Modernity
The Information Age
Identity and Territory
Devolution and Development
Changing scale as changing class relations
Reconstructing an urban and regional political economy
Renewing the Geography of Regions
The Rise of the Regional State in Economic Governance
Territorial Competition and the Predictability of Collective (In)Action
Subnational Governance and Economic and Social Development
The Economic (in)Efficiency of Devolution
Is There a Global Link between Regional Disparities and Devolution
Gandhi
| Unique citing works | 65 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3,82 |
| Citation span | 2009 - 2026 (18) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 61 |