systematic review

Highlights from our most popular Policy & Politics articles of 2025 exploring narratives, design, and democracy in policymaking

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by Sarah Brown and Allegra Fullerton

Two women, the authors of this blog.

In celebration of the broad aims of Policy & Politics, we decided to focus this quarter’s highlights collection on our three most popular reads of 2025 to date. Spanning narratives, policy design, and direct democracy, these articles beautifully illustrate the journal’s breadth of scope — unusual among top-ranked outlets in the field.

So, without further ado, here’s a précis of each to whet your appetite for the full research articles, which are free to view until the end of January 2026.

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A systematic review of the Narrative Policy Framework: a future research agenda

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by Johanna Kuenzler, Bettina Stauffer, Caroline Schlaufer, Geoboo Song, Aaron Smith-Walter and Michael D. Jones

6 portrait photos of the authors of this article

The Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) has become instrumental in understanding how policy narratives impact public policy processes.  In their recent article published in Policy & Politics, Johanna Kuenzler, Bettina Stauffer, Caroline Schlaufer, Geoboo Song, Aaron Smith-Walter and Michael D. Jones offer a systematic review and analysis of the historical development of the Narrative Policy Framework (NPF). Drawing on a review of 189 studies published between 2005 and 2022, they identify key trends, challenges and opportunities that shaped the trajectory of this influential framework and derive insights into its key challenges to help define a future research agenda.

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Policy & Politics Highlights collection on Collaborative Governance: free to access from 31 July – 31 October 2025

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by Sarah Brown and Allegra Fullerton

Two women, the authors of this blog.

This quarter’s Policy & Politics highlights collection brings together three of our most popular articles recently published, that extend and deepen our theoretical and empirical understanding of collaborative governance. Each article advances our knowledge by engaging critically with key debates in the field, whether through conceptual synthesis, empirical exploration, or theoretical refinement. Together, they contribute to our understanding of the complexities and contingencies of collaboration in contemporary governance settings.

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A systematic review of conflict within collaborative governance

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by Jacob Torfing et al.

In a recent article published in Policy & Politics, entitled A systematic review of conflict within collaborative governance, authors Jacob Torfing, Reza Payandeh, Seyed Mostafa Jalili and Masoud Banafi provide a comprehensive overview of how conflict emerges and is managed within collaborative governance processes. Their systematic review draws on 62 peer-reviewed studies with the aim of identifying where, when, and how disagreements surface in collaborative governance initiatives—and what strategies are employed to deal with them.

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Updating your course reading lists? Check out our essential reading recommendations for Public Policy and Politics courses on emotions in public policy, the politics of environmental policy, and governance networks

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by Sarah Brown and Allegra H. Fullerton

As you plan reading lists for the coming academic year, this collection of recent articles offers fresh insights for units on emotions in public policy, the politics of environmental policy, and governance networks. Each article draws on cutting-edge empirical research combined with conceptual innovation, making them ideal for both undergraduate and postgraduate modules exploring the politics of policymaking.

We hope these suggestions save you time and effort in mining recent articles while ensuring your course materials reflect the latest research from the frontiers of the discipline.

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