Culture and Policy Transfer: From Insight to Impact
| Author | Hang Duong |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/14789299221095057 |
| Published date | 01 May 2023 |
| Date | 01 May 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
https://doi.org/10.1177/14789299221095057
Political Studies Review
2023, Vol. 21(2) 306 –320
© The Author(s) 2022
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/14789299221095057
journals.sagepub.com/home/psrev
Culture and Policy Transfer:
From Insight to Impact
Hang Duong
Abstract
Culture has long been recognized and conceptualized as an important and indispensable influencing
factor in policy transfer. However, inadequate attention has been devoted to the study of culture
in this area of scholarship. Using qualitative data, mainly from interviews with policy-makers and
policy-takers in Vietnam, this paper examines the relevance of culture in Vietnam’s merit-based
policy transfer. It indicates how the conceptualization of culture is significant to policy transfer
analysis. It also shows that culture at all levels—macro, meso, and micro—can influence both
the policy transfer process and the outcomes. At the same time, it contends that despite this
important role, culture acts more as a joint-influencing factor than a sole determinant in policy
transfer. This paper argues that a multi-level and culture-sensitive approach to cultural analysis in
policy transfer is a key to understand the dynamics of culture in the process.
Keywords
culture, policy transfer, Vietnam, meritocracy, cultural influence
Accepted: 28 March 2022
Introduction
“Under-explored,” “overlooked,” “neglected,” “under-acknowledged,” or “poorly
researched” are words used by scholars to describe the study of culture in policy transfer
literature (Bertram, 2022; Porto de Oliveira, 2021; Romano, 2021). These observations
are justified in the context of burgeoning research about policy transfer, which highlights
the lack of attention to the relevance of culture in the process. Despite this reality, the
importance of culture in policy transfer has not been entirely overlooked. Along with
historical, political, institutional, and socio-economic factors, culture is recognized and
conceptualized as an important and indispensable influencing factor in policy transfer
(Dolowitz and Marsh, 1996; Evans, 2009; Lenschow et al., 2005; Minkman et al., 2018).
Culture plays such an important role because it provides a background for policy dis-
course (Lenschow et al., 2005). Thus, studying the influence of culture on policy transfer
contributes to a better understanding of the dynamics and the nature of the process.
The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
Corresponding author:
Hang Duong, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Perth, WA 6009, Australia.
Email: thuyhang.duong@research.uwa.edu.au
1095057PSW0010.1177/14789299221095057Political Studies ReviewDuong
research-article2022
Article
To continue reading
Request your trial