This is a comparative study of how four countries –Canada, United States of America, England and Wales, and Australia –have developed youth crime related parental responsibility laws. In particular, I explore how governments have responded to calls for making parents more responsible for the criminal behavior of their children by relying on methods of governing that seek to incorporate the concept of “responsibilization” into legislation and practice. In doing so, I show how governments in a number of countries have ostensibly moved toward less state intervention in the prevention of youth criminality and have come to rely more on parents by enacting laws that acknowledge parental accountability for the criminality of children. In addition, this study uses the concept of policy transfer to examine how those responsible for developing youth criminal justice policy look to policies or laws in other jurisdictions for ways to prevent youth criminality. Despite the fact that there are similarities in legislation across the four countries examined in this study, only minimally do governments in these countries make reference to policies found in other countries. The thesis also looks at specific national and state–level government debates surrounding parental responsibility laws, and the perceptions governments elected officials have of youth criminality and parental responsibility.

This thesis research explores the influence of the community-based rehabilitation approach on development programming in Gulu, Uganda. This CBR approach, originally designed to address the multidimensional needs of persons with disabilities living in rural, low-income regions, has been endorsed by many development actors, including the Government of Uganda and the United Nations. It also holds the potential to address the complex intersection of disability, poverty and conflict that resulted from two decades of violent conflict in Northern Uganda. An environmental scan and interviews with development professionals from the local government and non-government organizations was conducted to identify the ways in which this international policy idea has influenced development programming, and the obstacles to implementing community-based rehabilitation in Gulu. This research contributes to the literature on policy transfer, and illustrates how local development actors often lack the capacity to fully implement and sustain international “best practices.” While community-based rehabilitation may be a way to address the nexus of disability, poverty and conflict in places like Gulu, too few resources have been committed to fully implementing it and supporting persons with disabilities.

In 2002, the Indian government initiated a broad range of programmes that proposed market-based reforms for water. Inspired by World Bank’s policy ideas, the processes have often led to conflicts in India. The conventional wisdom on water sector policies in developing countries insists that international structures constrain and determine state behavior in initiating policy change. However, I argue that changes in urban water policies in India is, primarily, not a case of sole dominance of international financial institutions and imposition of external preferences; rather they also reflect the new global realities of transformed ‘state interests and institutions’ emerging in India. My argument is, while external engagement in water sector continues, the developments of the federal state in an globalised era of political and economic interchanges has led to new equations in the central-local relations. Within the new governance structures emerging in the decentralized context, the sub-national units emerge as significant influences on the speed, pace, and extent of enactment and implementation of global water policies in India. The adoption of national and State water policies, since 2002, and implementation of 24/7 water supply programme illustrates my argument. To support my argument I draw on the policy transfer literature to explain global policy initiatives in water in India. I develop a framework based on theories of policy transfer and political economy of policy reform for a critical and systematic analysis on global policy transfer in the context of World Bank programmes in India. Using case study evidence of transfer to a single sub-national-state in India, and drawing out comparisons on design and implementation of two water supply projects, I provide critical insights on implementation of global policy ideas within local settings, undertaken by the sub-national political and policy elite in India. My findings highlight a coincidence of interests between sub-national policy elite and global actors in introducing market mechanisms in water, and thereby link global neoliberal restructuring of water to transformed state power and interests at domestic levels. The ‘political economy of policy transfer’ in water therefore contributes to the theoretical and empirical literature on water policy-making in an era of increased global exchanges.

The overall purpose of the essay is to compare the three Swedish municipalities Helsingborg, Umeå and Örebro. The essay has two aims. The first is to relate the theory e-governance with the concept of digitalization. The second is to see if the analysis implies that policy transfer have occurred between the municipalities. The two research questions are: 1) How does the municipalities express digitalization and can this be related to e-governance? and 2) Are there similarities between the municipalities’ approach to digitalization that might imply that policy transfer has occurred? The method that have been used for the analysis is a qualitative literature study with focus on the discourse. This method was supplemented with a Most similar systems design in order to select municipalities with similar traits. The conclusions of the essay are that e-governance is a functional theory for contextualising digitalization and that all the municipalities are working, in various degrees, to digitalize their respective administration. In addition, there have likely been some kind of policy transfer between the municipalities. The why and the origin of the transfer have not been researched further in this essay.

Every policy problem has inherent value dimensions. It is on the basis of values that a state of affairs is perceived as undesirable, and thus acknowledged as a problem. This makes the process of defining and negotiating the meaning of a problem an essentially political process. Despite this, bureaucracy and expertise have a strong, if not increasing, influence over the formation of policy problems. An objectivist knowledge view predominates within the public managerial realm, which obscures the political dimension of problem formulation, while policy problems tend to be approached as a matter of efficiency. This thesis provides an account of mechanisms that shape and constrain the way a particular policy problem is understood and addressed. It analyses how policy actors make sense of particular problems, by drawing on different discourses (scientific, institutional, popular or media). The empirical case of this thesis is the formation of public safety policy in Sweden. The understanding of the problem of unsafety within Swedish policy is shown to be intrinsically related to the research field of fear of crime. The two are mutually dependent and exert an ideational path dependency. The ideational constraints on the understanding of unsafety are further affected by the institutional setting. It is argued that the appointed institutions and the emphasis on local level have a part in fostering individualist explanations and solutions,while obviating structural interpretations of the problem. The thesis finds that when governing complex policy problems there is a need to pay closer attention to how the problem is defined and how its meaning is constrained. It is crucial to make transparent the values inherent in definitions of problems as well as in research claims. By acknowledging the entwinement of policy and research the policy formation process may become characterized by greater reflexivity, and the possibility of resolving wicked problems may enlarge.

This thesis investigates how external sources inform and impact Somaliland’s national teacher education policy making processes. In this research, external factor is mainly constituted by INGOs that are helping Somaliland’s education and teacher education re-construction which are considered to be part of wider global-national interactions. The conceptual frameworks of policy making processes, policy transfer, lesson drawing and policy learning are used to develop the theoretical perspectives that inform the research question. Constructivist’s qualitative research approach which utilises critical discourse analysis as the principle methodology has been used to gain an understanding of the discursive construction of meaning about Somaliland’s education reforms and analyse the discourses of teacher education and teacher professionalism that are evident in three contemporary education reform policy documents and interview data. This thesis considered policy making processes as a contested, dynamic and multidimensional phenomena and has acknowledged the centrality of power and resources in policy making processes. The analysis of the research data constructed Somaliland’s education reforms as a discourse of human capital. This had implications for the strategies for managing change, quality and improvement perception, and reconceptualisations of teacher education and teacher professionalism. The thesis concludes with concerns about the contextual visibility to implement the new discourses of education and teacher education and calls for increased policy learning, capacity building, resource increase and modernisation of institutions as well as change of the culture of work.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Since the advent of South Africa‘s democracy in 1994 there have been several changes in the policy and legislative arena specifically promoting public-private-partnerships in the health sector. These initiatives have given rise to opportunities for inter-sectoral policy transfer under the rubric of ―best practices‖. This exploratory study examines the character, obstacles and contested nature of a selection of policy transfers between private and public health institutions in a single province of South Africa. The study looks at the dynamics at play around envisaged, current and past transfers of policies and organisational practices in relation to administrative systems and technologies used in four different hospital settings – two public and two private hospitals in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. This thesis explores the views of managers and labour organisations about policy transfer focusing on local contexts, and how various parties construct policy transfer, hence providing a perspective of policy at the ―plant‖ level. In this research, special focus is placed on different agents‘ role and understandings of their contexts and how and why policies move and contradictions of these developments. In-depth interviews were conducted at four major Eastern Cape hospitals. The thesis argues that in practice, policy transfer is messy, politicized and traversed by power and vested interests and that organised labour plays a key role in policy transfer process. The thesis focuses on the different philosophical/ideological underpinnings, socio-political values and operational environments in each sector. This study is designed to contribute to existing knowledge on practices particularly between the public and private sectors in order to widen the understanding of the complexity of transferability.

A tuberculose (TB) é considerada como um grave problema de saúde pública, e o Tratamento Diretamente Observado (TDO) é uma estratégia para minimizar o risco de abandono e aumentar as taxas de cura da doença. Os profissionais de saúde são atores importantes na transferência de política (TP) do TDO em todas as fases deste processo, incluindo a fase de manutenção e expansão. Dada a importância destes atores, a presente investigação propõe-se analisar a TP do TDO sob a ótica dos profissionais de saúde que atuam no controle da TB na Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) de dois municípios prioritários, sendo estes: Indaiatuba e Piracicaba. Trata-se de um estudo exploratório descritivo de corte transversal, cuja coleta ocorreu no período de junho a agosto de 2016. Participaram do estudo 98 profissionais de saúde de ensino médio e superior (técnico/auxiliar de enfermagem, enfermeiro, médico). A análise dos dados ocorreu por meio da técnica de estatística descritiva e multivariada, utilizando o software Statistica 12, da Statsoft.Inc o programa R versão 3.2.3. Os resultados apontaram que dos seis domínios avaliados, três (Inovação, Prática do TDO e Estratégia para melhorar a adesão da pessoa com TB ao TDO) apresentaram diferenças estatísticas e também menores valores na avaliação dos profissionais. Com relação ao tipo de unidade de saúde, notou-se diferença na avaliação da TP do TDO, sendo que os profissionais de saúde inseridos na ESF avaliaram favoravelmente as ações quando comparados com àqueles inscritos nas UBS. Identificou-se por meio da análise exploratória dos domínios com menores valores que as ações avaliadas como desfavoráveis foram: inovação para trabalhar com a pessoa em TDO; participação da sociedade civil nas ações de controle da TB; motivação profissional; autonomia da pessoa em TDO; existência de um plano individual para a pessoa em tratamento de TB; estratégias para promover adesão da pessoa com TB ao TDO; recursos comunitários para apoiar a pessoa em tratamento e desenvolvimento de ações intersetoriais. O município de Piracicaba apresentou resultados desfavoráveis na avaliação da TP do TDO, enquanto o município de Indaiatuba, apresentou resultados favoráveis na maioria das ações de TP do TDO. Conclui-se que os municípios necessitam avançar na TP do TDO de forma a compreender a complexidade do cuidado à pessoa com TB, que por sua vez, ultrapassa o âmbito patológico e abarcam questões de cunho social. Outrossim, urge também a necessidade de melhoria das questões relacionadas à organização do processo de trabalho / Tuberculosis (TB) is considered as a serious public health problem, and the Diretcly Observed Treatment (DOT) is a way to minimize the risks of abandonment and increase the disease cure rates. Health professionals are importante actors in the policy transfer (PT) of DOT in all stages of this process, including the phase of maintenance and expansion. Given the importance of these actors, the present investigation proposes to analyze the PT of DOT from the point of view of health professionals which work in TB control in Primary Health Attention (PHA) of two priority counties, being these: Indaiatuba and Piracicaba. It is an exploratory, descriptive and cross section study, carried out in the period from june to august, 2016. Participated in the study 98 health professionals of high school and university graduate (doctor, nursing, technician/auxiliary nursing).The data analysis occurred by means of desiptive and multivariate analysis techiniques, using the software Statistica 12, of 3 3]~]Statsoft.Incand R Program version 3.2.3. The results pointed to the six domains evaluated, three (Innovation, DOT Practice and Strategy to improve the treatment of the person with TB to DOT). Regarding the kind of health unit, there was a difference in the TP of DOT evaluation, and the health professionals included in the FHS are compatible with the actions when compared to the BHU records. It was identified through the exploratory analysis of the domains with smaller values that the actions evaluated as unfavorable were: innovation to work with one person in all; Civil society participation in TB control actions; Professional motivation; Autonomy of the person in DOT; Existence of an individual plan for a person undergoing TB treatment; Strategies to promote adherence of the person with TB to DOT; Community resources to support a person in treatment and development of intersectoral actions. The county of Piracicaba showed unfavorable results in the evaluation of the PT of the DOT, while Indaiatuba showed favorable results in most of the actions of the TP of the DOT. It is concluded that the counties need to move forward in the TP of DOT, viewing the complexity of care that is provide to people with TB, which, in turn, exceeds the pathological objective and encompass social issues. There is also a need to improve the issues related to the organization of the work process

V práci jsou analyzovány kořeny, vývoj, současné postavení, hrozby a výzvy think-tanků v České a Slovenské republice. Srovnání s jejich tradicí ve Spojených státech zkoumá přenositelnost amerického "modelu" think-tanků do střední a východní Evropy. Tento přenos je značně omezený a krátkodobě nerealizovatelný vzhledem k rozdílným legislativním podmínkám a nerozvinuté filantropii. Zvláštní pozornost je věnována motivům k vytváření regionálních i mezinárodních sítí think-tanků. Práce vychází jednak z dosavadní literatury na toto téma, jednak z dotazníkového šetření.

A tuberculose (TB) é considerada como um grave problema de saúde pública, e o Tratamento Diretamente Observado (TDO) é uma estratégia para minimizar o risco de abandono e aumentar as taxas de cura da doença. Os profissionais de saúde são atores importantes na transferência de política (TP) do TDO em todas as fases deste processo, incluindo a fase de manutenção e expansão. Dada a importância destes atores, a presente investigação propõe-se analisar a TP do TDO sob a ótica dos profissionais de saúde que atuam no controle da TB na Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) de dois municípios prioritários, sendo estes: Indaiatuba e Piracicaba. Trata-se de um estudo exploratório descritivo de corte transversal, cuja coleta ocorreu no período de junho a agosto de 2016. Participaram do estudo 98 profissionais de saúde de ensino médio e superior (técnico/auxiliar de enfermagem, enfermeiro, médico). A análise dos dados ocorreu por meio da técnica de estatística descritiva e multivariada, utilizando o software Statistica 12, da Statsoft.Inc o programa R versão 3.2.3. Os resultados apontaram que dos seis domínios avaliados, três (Inovação, Prática do TDO e Estratégia para melhorar a adesão da pessoa com TB ao TDO) apresentaram diferenças estatísticas e também menores valores na avaliação dos profissionais. Com relação ao tipo de unidade de saúde, notou-se diferença na avaliação da TP do TDO, sendo que os profissionais de saúde inseridos na ESF avaliaram favoravelmente as ações quando comparados com àqueles inscritos nas UBS. Identificou-se por meio da análise exploratória dos domínios com menores valores que as ações avaliadas como desfavoráveis foram: inovação para trabalhar com a pessoa em TDO; participação da sociedade civil nas ações de controle da TB; motivação profissional; autonomia da pessoa em TDO; existência de um plano individual para a pessoa em tratamento de TB; estratégias para promover adesão da pessoa com TB ao TDO; recursos comunitários para apoiar a pessoa em tratamento e desenvolvimento de ações intersetoriais. O município de Piracicaba apresentou resultados desfavoráveis na avaliação da TP do TDO, enquanto o município de Indaiatuba, apresentou resultados favoráveis na maioria das ações de TP do TDO. Conclui-se que os municípios necessitam avançar na TP do TDO de forma a compreender a complexidade do cuidado à pessoa com TB, que por sua vez, ultrapassa o âmbito patológico e abarcam questões de cunho social. Outrossim, urge também a necessidade de melhoria das questões relacionadas à organização do processo de trabalho / Tuberculosis (TB) is considered as a serious public health problem, and the Diretcly Observed Treatment (DOT) is a way to minimize the risks of abandonment and increase the disease cure rates. Health professionals are importante actors in the policy transfer (PT) of DOT in all stages of this process, including the phase of maintenance and expansion. Given the importance of these actors, the present investigation proposes to analyze the PT of DOT from the point of view of health professionals which work in TB control in Primary Health Attention (PHA) of two priority counties, being these: Indaiatuba and Piracicaba. It is an exploratory, descriptive and cross section study, carried out in the period from june to august, 2016. Participated in the study 98 health professionals of high school and university graduate (doctor, nursing, technician/auxiliary nursing).The data analysis occurred by means of desiptive and multivariate analysis techiniques, using the software Statistica 12, of 3 3]~]Statsoft.Incand R Program version 3.2.3. The results pointed to the six domains evaluated, three (Innovation, DOT Practice and Strategy to improve the treatment of the person with TB to DOT). Regarding the kind of health unit, there was a difference in the TP of DOT evaluation, and the health professionals included in the FHS are compatible with the actions when compared to the BHU records. It was identified through the exploratory analysis of the domains with smaller values that the actions evaluated as unfavorable were: innovation to work with one person in all; Civil society participation in TB control actions; Professional motivation; Autonomy of the person in DOT; Existence of an individual plan for a person undergoing TB treatment; Strategies to promote adherence of the person with TB to DOT; Community resources to support a person in treatment and development of intersectoral actions. The county of Piracicaba showed unfavorable results in the evaluation of the PT of the DOT, while Indaiatuba showed favorable results in most of the actions of the TP of the DOT. It is concluded that the counties need to move forward in the TP of DOT, viewing the complexity of care that is provide to people with TB, which, in turn, exceeds the pathological objective and encompass social issues. There is also a need to improve the issues related to the organization of the work process