Discursive Institutionalism in Policy Analysis

Discursive institutionalism explores how ideas and the processes of discourse shape policy outcomes within institutional contexts. It advances beyond structural and historical dimensions of institutions by emphasising two interlinked elements: the substantive content of ideas (what actors think and believe) and the interactive processes through which ideas are communicated, contested and negotiated. This approach views policy arenas as sites of ongoing dialogue, where meaning is constructed, challenged and reconfigured. By treating discourse as both the medium and the message of institutional change, discursive institutionalism illuminates how policy agendas emerge, how coalitions form around shared frames and how power is exercised through the control of language and narratives. Globally, scholars have applied this lens to topics ranging from health system reform to climate governance, demonstrating how discursive practices can enable or constrain reform, cultivate legitimacy and foster resilience. In practical terms, understanding the discursive dimensions of policy helps practitioners to craft more effective communications strategies, anticipate contested meanings and identify windows of opportunity for change.

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Recent work on framing strategies has revealed how policy actors mobilise the polysemy and valence of key concepts—such as sustainability or solidarity—to render ideas robust and resilient. By aligning frames with prevailing norms and by adapting narratives to shifting contexts, actors bolster the appeal of proposals and inoculate them against counter-frames. Complementing this, analyses of semantic space highlight how dominant coalitions occupy discursive terrain by decontesting concepts and crowding out alternative meanings. Studies demonstrate that opening the semantic space—by exposing unchallenged assumptions and promoting discursive plurality—can democratise policy debates and recalibrate power relations. Foundational scholarship on ideational power further refines these insights by distinguishing power through, over and in ideas: actors persuade others to adopt their views, impose or resist particular ideas and establish hegemonic discourses that delimit what is thinkable or sayable in policy circles. Together, these studies underscore the dynamic interplay between content and process in discursive institutionalism and point to strategies for enhancing discursive agency within entrenched institutional settings.

Discursive Institutionalism in Policy Analysis publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in discursive institutionalism in policy analysis across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Discursive institutionalism: A theoretical approach that examines how ideas and communicative interactions drive institutional change and policy outcomes.

Ideational power: The capacity of actors to influence norms and beliefs through the use of ideas, encompassing persuasion, imposition and hegemony.

Framing: The strategic presentation of ideas to shape how issues are perceived, prioritised and debated.

Semantic space: The range of available meanings and concepts in policy discourse, including the dominance or exclusion of particular frames.

References

1. How framing strategies foster robust policy ideas. Policy and Society (2024).
2. Occupy the semantic space! Opening up the language of better regulation. Journal of European Public Policy (2023).
3. Health system reform and path-dependency: how ideas constrained change in South Africa’s national health insurance policy process. Policy Sciences (2024).
4. Power through, over and in ideas: conceptualizing ideational power in discursive institutionalism. Journal of European Public Policy (2015).