HISTORICAL INSTITUTIONALISM IN COMPARATIVE POLITICS

Thelen, Kathleen

doi:10.1146/annurev.polisci.2.1.369

Cited by 3,409Political Science Research and EducationQualitative Comparative Analysis ResearchSocial Policy and Reform Studies

HISTORICAL INSTITUTIONALISM IN COMPARATIVE POLITICS

Thelen, Kathleen·1999·Annual Review of Political Science

DOI 10.1146/annurev.polisci.2.1.369

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Abstract

▪ Abstract This article provides an overview of recent developments in historical institutionalism. First, it reviews some distinctions that are commonly drawn between the “historical” and the “rational choice” variants of institutionalism and shows that there are more points of tangency than typically assumed. However, differences remain in how scholars in the two traditions approach empirical problems. The contrast of rational choice's emphasis on institutions as coordination mechanisms that generate or sustain equilibria versus historical institutionalism's emphasis on how institutions emerge from and are embedded in concrete temporal processes serves as the foundation for the second half of the essay, which assesses our progress in understanding institutional formation and change. Drawing on insights from recent historical institutional work on “critical junctures” and on “policy feedbacks,” the article proposes a way of thinking about institutional evolution and path dependency that provides an alternative to equilibrium and other approaches that separate the analysis of institutional stability from that of institutional change.

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Thelen's critique led many to abandon critical juncture analysis entirely.
“Worse, Thelen’s critique led many to abandon critical juncture analysis entirely, in what seems a clear case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater.”
From Taking critical junctures seriously: Theory and method for causal analysis of rapid institutional change (2023) · cites this paper as Thelen, 1999

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Authors: Thelen, K.
Affiliations: Northwestern University (US)
Corresponding author: Thelen, Kathleen
ORCID: Thelen, Kathleen
Venue: Annual Review of Political Science
Publisher: Annual Reviews
Published: 1999-06
Volume: 2
Issue: 1
Pages: 369-404
ISSN: 1094-2939 (ISSN-L)
1545-1577
DOI: 10.1146/annurev.polisci.2.1.369
OpenAlex: W3151872007
Cited by: 3,409
References: 63
Citations by year: 2026: 144 · 2025: 130 · 2024: 231 · 2023: 166 · 2022: 146 · 2021: 147 · 2020: 207 · 2019: 178 · 2018: 190 · 2017: 115 · 2016: 142 · 2015: 143 · 2014: 161 · 2013: 125 · 2012: 131
FWCI: 56.37
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Annual Review of Political Science (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Political Science Research and Education
Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research
Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Social Policy and Reform Studies
Keywords: historical institutionalism, rational choice institutionalism, institutional formation, institutional change, critical junctures, policy feedback, path dependence, institutional evolution, institutional stability, equilibrium analysis, coordination mechanisms

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HISTORICAL INSTITUTIONALISM IN COMPARATIVE POLITICS

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