survey experiment

Preference reversals in asylum policy: how multidimensional incentives reshape elite decision making

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by Asli Unan

A portrait photo of a woman, Asli Unan, the author of the article

In a recent article published in Policy & Politics, Asli Unan investigates how local politicians’ preferences can shift during early-stage policy adoption, particularly in response to multidimensional policy environments. Focusing on the case of asylum dispersal in Greece, the study moves beyond traditional explanations that frame policy reversals as responses to electoral pressure. Instead, it highlights how additional incentives—such as financial compensation or increased local control—can prompt local elites to reverse their initial preferences, even in the absence of voter feedback.

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SPECIAL ISSUE BLOG SERIES: Blog 2 – Behavioural insights into what motivates public employees on the front line to respond to reforms championed by elected politicians

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Special issue blog series on advancing our understanding of the politics behind nudge and the ‘behavioural insights’ trend in public policy.

Don leeDon Lee 

My recent article in Policy & Politics investigates how bureaucrats on the front line make policy implementation decisions. Political leaders and lawmakers tend to assume that street-level bureaucrats will follow their direction and implement polices as they devised. However, front line workers, in fact, have room to interpret the policies in the implementation process. To understand what important factors influence street-level bureaucrats’ implementation decisions, my article examines two central elements in policy implementation: 1) whether street-level bureaucrats’ policy orientation is congruent with that of elected politicians and 2) to what extent street-level bureaucrats have discretion in implementing policies. Continue reading →