SOME ADVANTAGES OF AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO IMPLEMENTATION ANALYSIS: A STUDY OF AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY POLICY

Abstract

Models of policy implementation have been characterized by a tension between ‘bottom’ and ‘top‐down’ approaches to public sector management. In recent years, this literature moved into ‘third generation’ in attempting to unify implementation analysis. One recent approach at consolidating key elements of ‘top‐down’ and ‘bottom‐up’ literature has been provided by Soren Winter. This article applies Winter's model to two longitudinal studies of industry programmes in Australia. This analysis suggests that Winter's integrated approach to implementation addresses some of the weaknesses of commonly used rational‐comprehensive models such as the Mazmanian and Sabatier framework. However, there are also some weaknesses in Winter's integrated model which implies an agenda for future implementation analysis.