The New Institutionalism: Organizational Factors in Political Life
Item
Title
The New Institutionalism: Organizational Factors in Political Life
Abstract/Description
Contemporary theories of politics tend to portray politics as a reflection of society, political phenomena as the aggregate consequences of individual behavior, action as the result of choices based on calculated self-interest, history as efficient in reaching unique and appropriate outcomes, and decision making and the allocation of resources as the central foci of political life. Some recent theoretical thought in political science, however, blends elements of these theoretical styles into an older concern with institutions. This new institutionalism emphasizes the relative autonomy of political institutions, possibilities for inefficiency in history, and the importance of symbolic action to an understanding of politics. Such ideas have a reasonable empirical basis, but they are not characterized by powerful theoretical forms. Some directions for theoretical research may, however, be identified in institutionalist conceptions of political order.
Author/creator
Date
In publication
Volume
78
Issue
3
Pages
734-749
Resource type
Background/Context
Medium
Print
Background/context type
Conceptual
Open access/free-text available
Yes
Peer reviewed
No
ISSN
0003-0554, 1537-5943
DOI
Citation
March, J. G., & Olsen, J. P. (1983). The New Institutionalism: Organizational Factors in Political Life. American Political Science Review, 78(3), 734–749. https://doi.org/10.2307/1961840
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