An Angel on the Wind: How Heroic Policy Narratives Shape Policy Realities

Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) is a new and maturing theory of the policy process that takes a systematic, scientific approach to understanding the social construction of policy realities. As such, NPF serves as a bridge between postpositivists, who assert that public policymaking is contextualized through narratives and social construction, and positivists, who contend that legitimacy is grounded in falsifiable claims. The central questions of NPF are: What is the empirical role of policy narratives in the policy process and do policy narratives influence policy outcomes? First, the contributions of NPF scholarship at three levels of analysis—micro, meso, and macro—are examined. Next, necessary conditions of a policy narrative are specified, accompanied by detailed discussion of the narrative components: narrative elements, narrative strategies, and policy beliefs. Finally, an empirical illustration of NPF—a case study of Cape Wind's proposal to install wind turbines off Nantucket—is presented. Although intercoalitional differences have long been studied in the NPF scholarship, this is the first study to examine intracoalitional cohesion or the extent to which a coalition tells the same story across narrative elements, narrative strategies, and policy beliefs. NPF is a new approach to the study of the policy process that offers empirical pathways to better speculating the role of narrative in the policy process.     

Cultural policy as development policy: evidence from the United States

Cultural policies and cultural projects in the United States have been reframed to emphasize their economic benefits to cities. New alliances between arts advocates and place promoters are apparent at all levels, but are most prominent locally. These new alliances are facilitated by the changing interests of local officials and business people, who have come to believe there is economic value in the arts and of arts administrators, for whom attracting broader public support has become imperative. In some cities, entirely new organizational structures have sprung up to plan and implement projects that serve cultural and economic development advocates simultaneously. Such new institutions are most prominent in more economically disadvantaged cities.     

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Konig, David Thomas, ed. Devising Liberty: Preserving and Creating Freedom in the New American Republic Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press 383 pages, $45.00. ISBN 0-8047-2536-5 Publication Date: October 1995

Campbell, Colin and Bert A. Rockman, eds. The Clinton Presidency: First Appraisals Chatham, NJ: Chatham House 408 pp., $30.00 cloth, $22.95 paper ISBN 1-56643-013-5 cloth ISBN 1-56643-014-3 paper Publication Date: 1995

Drew, Elizabeth Showdown: The Struggle Between the Gingrich Congress and the Clinton White House New York: Simon &; Schuster 398 pp., $25.00, ISBN 0-684-81518-4 Publication Date: April 1996

Walden, Gregory S. On Best Behavior: The Clinton Administration and Ethics in Government Indianapolis: Hudson Institute 637 pp., $19.95 paper ISBN 1-55813-056-X paper Publication Date: January 1996

Campagna, Anthony S. Economic Policy in the Carter Administration Westport, CT: Greenwood 216 pp., $59.95, ISBN 0-313-?.9568-9 Publication Date: October 1995

Tarr, G. Alan, ed. Constitutional Politics in the States: Contemporary Controversies and Historical Patterns Westport, CT: Greenwood 223 pp., $59.95, ISBN 0-313-28523-3 Publication Date: April 1996

Pinello, Daniel R. The Impact of Judicial-Selection Method on State Supreme Court Policy: Innovation, Reaction, and Atrophy Westport, CT: Greenwood 248 pp., $59.95. ISBN 0-313-29243-4 Publication Date: October 1995

Franklin, John Hope and Genna Rae McNeil, eds. African Americans and the Living Constitution Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press 364 pp., $45.00 cloth, $14.95 paper ISBN 1-56098-472-4 cloth ISBN 1-56098-471-6 paper Publication Date: June 1995

Schwartz, Bernard The Unpublished Opinions of the Rehnquist Court New York: Oxford University Press 492 pp., $45.00, ISBN 0-19-509332-1 Publication Date: 1996

Greenawalt, Kent Fighting Words: Individuals, Communities, and Liberties of Speech Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press 189 pp., $24.95, ISBN 0-691-03638-1 Publication Date: May 1995

Kramnick, Isaac and R. Laurence Moore The Godless Constitution: The Case against Religious Correctness New York: W.W. Norton 191 pp., $22.00, ISBN 0-393-03961-7 Publication Date: January 1996

Rozell, Mark J. and Clyde Wilcox Second Coming: The New Christian Right in Virginia Politics Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press 285 pp., $32.95, ISBN 0-8018-5297-8 Publication Date: April 1996

Gove, Samuel K. and James D. Nowlan Illinois Politics and Government: The Expanding Metropolitan Frontier Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press 290 pp. $45.00 cloth. $20.00 paper ISBN 0-8032-2120-7 cloth ISBN 0-8032-7014-3 paper Publication Date: June 1996

Finegold, Kenneth Experts and Politicians: Reform Challenges to Machine Politics in New York, Cleveland, and Chicago Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press 264 pp., $39.50. ISBN 0-691-03734-5 Publication Date: March 1995

Shafer, Byron E. and William J. M. Claggett The Two Majorities: The Issue Context of Modern American Politics Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press 227 pp., $45.00 cloth, $14.95 paper ISBN 0-8018-5018-5 cloth ISBN 0-8018-5019-3 paper Publication date: August 1995

Ansolabehere, Stephen and Shanto Iyengar Going Negative: How Political Advertisements Shrink and Polarize the Electorate New York: Free Press 243 pp., $24.00, ISBN 0-684-82284-9 Publication Date: January 1996

Stein, Robert M. and Kenneth N. Bickers Perpetuating the Pork Barrel: Policy Subsystems and American Democracy New York: Cambridge University Press 232 pp., $49.95. ISBN 0-521-48298-4 Publication Date: December 1995

Mucciaroni, Gary Reversals of Fortune: Public Policy and Private Interests Washington, DC: Brookings Institution 225 pp., $34.95 cloth. $14.95 paper ISBN 0-8157-5876-6 cloth ISBN 0-8157-5875-8 paper Publication Date: January 1995

Ottosen, Gary K. and Douglas N. Thompson Reducing Unemployment: A Case for Government Deregulation Westport, CT: Praeger 171 pp., $49.95, ISBN 0-275-95360-2 Publication Date: January 1996

Handler, Joel F. Down from Bureaucracy: The Ambiguity of Privatization and Empowerment Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press 269 pp., $29.95, ISBN 0-691-04461-9 Publication Date: May 1996

Yandle, Bruce, ed. Land Rights: The 1990s' Property Rights Rebellion Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 333 pp., $57.50 cloth, $22.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-8028-2 cloth ISBN 0-8476-8029-0 paper Publication Date: June 1995

Jacobsohn, Gary Jeffrey and Susan Dunn, eds. Diversity and Citizenship: Rediscovering American Nationhood Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 156 pp., $49.50 cloth, $18.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-8091-6 cloth ISBN 0-8476-8092-4 paper Publication Date: February 1996

Bennett, Vivienne The Politics of Water: Urban Protest, Gender, and Power in Monterrey, Mexico Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press 232 pp., ISBN 0-8229-3908-8 Publication Date: December 1995

Morris, Stephen D. Political Reformism in Mexico: An Overview of Contemporary Mexican Politics Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner 261 pp., $49.95 cloth, $19.95 paper ISBN 1-55587-572-6 cloth ISBN 1-55587-594-7 paper Publication Date: October 1995

Roy, Olivier Afghanistan: From Holy War to Civil War Princeton, NJ: The Darwin Press 141 pp., $24.95, ISBN-0-87850-076-6 Publication Date: December 1995

Waltz, Susan E. Human Rights and Reform: Changing the Face of North African Politics Berkeley, CA: University of California Press 281 pp., $45.00 cloth, $16.00 paper ISBN 0-520-20003-9 cloth ISBN 0-520-20254-6 paper Publication Date: October 1995

Cordesman, Anthony H. and Abraham R. Wagner The Lessons of Modern War, Vol. 4: The Gulf War Boulder, CO: Westview 1022 pp., $98.00 cloth. $23.95 paper ISBN 0-8133-8601-2 cloth ISBN 0-8133-8602-0 paper Publication Date: April 1996

Righter, Rosemary Utopia Lost: The United Nations and World Order New York: Twentieth Century Fund 420 pp. $29.95, ISBN 0-87078-358-0 Publication Date: December 1995

Winslow, Anne, ed. Women, Politics, and the United Nations Westport, CT: Greenwood 213 pp., $59.95, ISBN 0-313-29522-0 Publication Date: 1995

Weiss, Thomas G. and Leon Gordenker, eds. NGOs, the UN, and Global Governance Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner 250 pp., $45.00 cloth, $18.95 paper ISBN 1-55587-613-7 cloth ISBN 1-55587-626-9 paper Publication Date: January 1996

Kolodziej, Edward A. and Roger E. Kanet, eds. Coping with Conflict after the Cold War Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press 407 pp., $49.95. ISBN 0-8018-5106-8 Publication Date: April 1996

Sanderson, Stephen K., ed. Civilizations and World Systems: Studying World-Historical Change Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press 324 pp., $46.00 cloth, $24.95 paper ISBN 0-7619-91042 cloth ISBN 0-7619-91050 paper Publication Date: October 1995

Held, David Democracy and the Global Order: From the Modern State to Cosmopolitan Governance Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press 324 pp., $49.50 cloth, $16.95 paper ISBN 0-8047-2686-8 cloth ISBN 0-8047-2687-6 cloth Publication Date: March 1996

Schneider, Barry R. and Lawrence E. Grinter Battlefield of the Future: Twenty-First Century Warfare Issues Maxwell Air Force Base, AL: Air War College 279 pp., CIP 95-36229 paper Publication Date: 1995

Roepke, Wilhelm The Moral Foundations of Civil Society New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction 235 pp., $21.95 paper ISBN 1-56000-852-0 paper Publication Date: 1995

Hekman, Susan J. Moral Voices, Moral Selves: Carol Gilligan and Feminist Moral Theory University Park, PA: Penn State Press 188 pp., $40.00 cloth. $16.95 paper ISBN 0-271-01483-0 cloth ISBN 0-271-01484-9 paper Publication Date: July 1995

Anderson, Walter Truett, ed. The Truth About the Truth: De-confusing and Re-constructing the Postmodern World New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons 260 pp., $13.95 paper ISBN 0-87477-801-8 paper Publication Date: September 1995

Carver, Terrell and Paul Thomas, eds. Rational Choice Marxism University Park, PA: Penn State Press 338 pp., $45.00 cloth $16.95 paper ISBN 0-271-01463-6 cloth ISBN 0-271-01464-4 paper Publication Date: October 1995

Lodge, Milton and Kathleen M. McGraw, eds. Political Judgment: Structure and Process Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press 313 pp., $39.50, ISBN 0-472-10541-8 Publication Date: June 1995

Simon, Thomas W. Democracy and Social Injustice: Law, Politics, and Philosophy Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 341 pp., $69.50 cloth, $24.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-7937-3 cloth ISBN 0-8476-7938-1 paper Publication Date: 1995

Miller, William L., ed. Alternatives to Freedom: Arguments and Opinions New York: Longman 230 pp., ISBN 0-582-25130-3 Publication Date: December 1995

Fowler, Michael Ross and Julie Marie Bunck Law, Power, and the Sovereign State: The Evolution and Application of the Concept of Sovereignty University Park, PA: Penn State Press 200 pp., $28.50 cloth. $13.95 paper ISBN 0-271-01470-9 cloth ISBN 0-271-01471-7 paper Publication Date: December 1995

Graham, John D. and Jonathan Baert Wiener, eds. Risk vs. Risk: Tradeoffs in Protecting Health and the Environment Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press 337 pp., $39.95. ISBN 0-674-77304-7 Publication Date: November 1995

Wise, M. Norton, ed. The Values of Precision Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press 372 pp., $49.50, ISBN 0-691-03759-0 Publication Date: April 1995

Ball, Terence Reappraising Political Theory: Revisionist Studies in the History of Political Thought New York: Oxford University Press 310 pp., ISBN 0-19-827995-7 paper Publication Date: 1995

Levine, David R Wealth and Freedom: An Introduction to Political Economy New York: Cambridge University Press 191 pp., $49.95 cloth, $15.95 paper ISBN 0-521-44314-8 cloth ISBN 0-521-44791-7 paper Publication Date: August 1995

Grasso, Kenneth L., Gerard V. Bradley, and Robert P. Hunt, eds. Catholicism, Liberalism, and Communitarianism: The Catholic Intellectual Tradition and the Moral Foundations of Democracy Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 271 pp., $64.50 cloth, $26.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-7995-0 cloth ISBN 0-8476-7994-2 paper Publication Date: September 1995

Ryan, Alan John Dewey and the High Tide of American Liberalism New York: Norton 414 pp., $30.00. ISBN 0-393-03773-8 Publication Date: July 1995

Meier, Heinrich; trans. J. Harvey Lomax Carl Schmitt and Leo Strauss: The Hidden Dialogue Chicago: University of Chicago Press 136 pp. $19.95, ISBN 0-226-51889-2 Publication Date: November 1995

McAllister, Ted V. Revolt against Modernity: Leo Strauss, Eric Voegelin, and the Search for a Postliberal Order Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas 323 pp., $29.95, ISBN 0-7006-0740-4 Publication Date: January 1996

Sorenson, Leonard R. Madison on the “General Welfare” of America: His Consistent Constitutional Vision Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 198 pp., $58.50 cloth, $22.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-8065-7 cloth ISBN 0-8476-8064-9 paper Publication Date: August 1995

Katz, Ellis and G. Alan Tarr, eds. Federalism and Rights Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield 208 pp., $57.50 cloth, $29.95 paper ISBN 0-8476-8089-4 cloth ISBN 0-8476-8090-8 paper Publication Date: February 1996

Duerst-Lahti, Georgia and Rita Mae Kelly, eds. Gender Power, Leadership, and Governance Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press 305 pp., $47.50 cloth, $17.95 paper ISBN 0-472-09610 cloth ISBN 0-472-06610 paper Publication Date: February 1996

Wintz, Cary D., ed. African American Political Thought, 1890-1930: Washington, Du Bois, Garvey, and Randolph Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe 344 pp., $59.95 cloth, $22.95 paper ISBN 1-56324-178-1 cloth ISBN 1-56324-179-X paper Publication Date: February 1996

Cossolotto, Matthew The Almanac of European Politics 1995 Washington, DC: CQ Press 321 pp., $49.95 cloth, $29.95 paper ISBN 0-87187-914-X cloth ISBN 0-87187-913-1 paper Publication Date: June 1995

Parrish, Thomas The Cold War Encyclopedia New York: Henry Holt 490 pp., $60.00, ISBN 0-8050-2778-5 Publication Date: January 1996

Comfort, Nicholas, ed. Brewer's Politics: A Phrase and Fable Dictionary. Revised ed. London: Cassell 693 pp., $29.95, ISBN 0-304-34659-4 Publication Date: April 1996

Merry, Robert W. Taking on the World: Joseph and Stewart Alsop, Guardians of the American Century New York: Viking 644 pp., $34.95. ISBN 0-670-83868-3 Publication Date: February 1996     

Identity and Place: the testament of designated heritage in Hong Kong

This paper examines the extent to which the identity of Hong Kong as a place, and of the Hong Kong Chinese as people, is expressed by the official heritage locations (the seventy-five Declared Monuments) designated by Hong Kong's Antiquities and Monuments Office. The discussion takes account of other heritage initiatives, in particular two recent monuments that commemorate the 1997 Handover of Hong Kong to China. Conclusions are that designated heritage in Hong Kong, more by chance than by deliberate strategy, reflects significant elements of the identities of the Hong Kong people and of Hong Kong as a place. However, more important to the Hong Kong Chinese person's sense of identity than built heritage are the bonds of kin and associated social events.