by Nadège Carlier, David Aubin, and Stéphane Moyson
In our recent article published in Policy & Politics as part of a special issue on Policy Learning: Types, Mechanisms and Effects, we researched the relative effects of diversity on collective learning in local collaborative networks in Belgium. Collaborative networks represent horizontal structures in public governance that facilitate interactions among diverse stakeholders, including civil servants, businesses, and citizens. These networks play a crucial role in fostering coherence, comprehensiveness, and innovation in cross-cutting public policies such as climate initiatives. However, achieving these benefits is particularly challenging in the aftermath of fragmented public action resulting from new public management reforms. To harness the advantages of collaboration, collective learning — defined as the broadened and mutual understanding of public issues resulting from repeated social interactions — is indispensable but not spontaneous. It requires participants within collaborative networks to update their beliefs and develop a deeper understanding of each other’s constraints, interests, and ideas. The diversity of participants within these networks presents learning opportunities that, while significant, do not always translate into tangible learning outcomes.
To explore how diversity contributes to collective learning in collaborative networks, our study focused on two networks within the city administration of Schaerbeek, Belgium. The first network centred on implementing sustainable procurement practices, while the second aimed to combat discrimination and promote diversity within the municipality. Over a span of approximately three years, public servants from various departments collaborated, exchanged information, and developed public policies.
Drawing on semi-structured interviews and employing mental models to evaluate collective learning, our research also used social network analysis to understand the interaction structure among diverse members. Our findings confirm that diversity indeed fosters unique learning opportunities and innovative solutions within collaborative networks. However, we discovered that the impact of diversity on collective learning varied depending on the specific network, yet it was consistently bolstered by social interactions, particularly through the integration of formal and informal channels. Furthermore, we found that the subjective perception of diversity was more meaningful than objective measurements, as it accounted for participants’ concerns regarding fairness and representativeness. Participants emphasised the importance of informal relationships in building social capital.
This study contributes to scholarly knowledge in three key areas. Firstly, it enhances our understanding of collective learning, emphasising the importance of developing shared understandings as a prerequisite for consensus formation. It also underscores the difficulties to bring out collective learning, even within collaborative governance contexts. Secondly, by applying mental models and innovative measurement approaches, our research bridges insights from psychology and resource management to evaluate collective learning, which has been relatively underexplored empirically compared to individual learning. Lastly, our findings shed light on the implications of inclusion levels and conditions for collaborative governance outcomes and policy innovations, suggesting that network coordinators should pay specific attention to the transparency of selection processes and encourage informal interactions among participants.
Table of contents for special issue blog series on Policy Expertise in Times of Crisis
Policy beliefs, belief uncertainty, and policy learning through the lens of the Advocacy Coalition Framework
Matthew C. Nowlin
Policy and organisational learning in judicial reform: evidence from Italy
Jonathan C. Kamkhaji and Giancarlo Vecchi
The relative effects of diversity on collective learning in local collaborative networks in Belgium
Nadège Carlier, David Aubin and Stéphane Moyson
Types of learning and varieties of innovation: how does policy learning enable policy innovation?
Nihit Goyal and Michael Howlett
How do governments learn from ad hoc groups during crises? From SARS to COVID-19
Sreeja Nair and Akshat Garg
Why policy failure is a prerequisite for innovation in the public sector
Philipp Trein and Thenia Vagionaki
Policy & Politics Journal Blog 