Evidence-based policymaking in times of acute crisis: comparing the use of scientific knowledge in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy
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Author (Corporation)
Publication date
2022
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Type
01A - Journal article
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Editor (Corporation)
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Parent work
Politische Vierteljahresschrift
Special issue
DOI of the original publication
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Series
Series number
Volume
63
Issue / Number
Pages / Duration
359-382
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Publisher / Publishing institution
Springer
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Abstract
This article studies how different systems of policy advice are suited to provide relevant knowledge in times of acute crisis. The notion of evidence-based policymaking (EBP) originated in the successful 1997 New Labour program in the United Kingdom to formulate policy based not on ideology but on sound empirical evidence. We provide a brief overview of the history of the concept and the current debates around it. We then outline the main characteristics of the policy advisory systems in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy through which scientific knowledge—in the form of either person-bound expertise or evidence generated through standard scientific processes—was fed into policy formulation processes before the COVID-19 crisis. Whereas EBP takes place in the form of institutionalized advisory bodies and draws on expertise rather than on evidence in Germany, the system in Switzerland focuses more on the use of evidence provided through external mandates. Italy has a hybrid politicized expert system. The article then analyzes how this different prioritization of expertise vs. evidence in the three countries affects policymakers’ capacity to include scientific knowledge in policy decisions in times of acute crisis. The comparison of the three countries implies that countries with policy advisory systems designed to use expertise are better placed to incorporate scientific knowledge into their decisions in times of acute crisis than are countries with policy advisory systems that relied primarily on evidence before the COVID-19 crisis.
Keywords
Evidence-based policies, Policy advice, Expert system, Scientific knowledge, Crisis management, COVID-19
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ISBN
ISSN
1862-2860
0032-3470
0032-3470
Language
English
Created during FHNW affiliation
No
Strategic action fields FHNW
Publication status
Published
Review
Peer review of the complete publication
Open access category
Hybrid
License
Citation
Hadorn, S., Sager, F., Mavrot, C., Malandrino, A., & Ege, J. (2022). Evidence-based policymaking in times of acute crisis: comparing the use of scientific knowledge in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. Politische Vierteljahresschrift, 63, 359–382. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11615-022-00382-x