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The Flight of the Bumblebee: Why Reform Is Difficult but Not Impossible

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 August 2006

Clarence Stone ,
Marion Orr  and
Donn Worgs
Clarence Stone
Affiliation:
George Washington, and University of Marylandcstone@gvpt.umd.edu
Marion Orr
Affiliation:
Brown UniversityMarion_Orr@brown.edu
Donn Worgs
Affiliation:
Towson Universitydworgs@ towson.edu
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Abstract

Positing behavior as interest driven insufficiently explains why reform is difficult. This article draws on experiences with school reform to argue that ideas in the form of purposes play a part. Purposes, however, are erratic sources of motivation, sometimes generating intense commitments but often functioning in a mercurial manner. They operate in conjunction with the character and strength of supports. Purposes that are compatible in principle may nevertheless compete for time, resources, and especially attention. Because human beings are creatures of bounded rationality, any given purpose is susceptible to attention shift. Interpersonal and interorganizational networks can serve as counterweights by bolstering identity with the reform goal, providing cognitive reinforcement for it, and enhancing the credibility of a reform goal as achievable. In an assessment of the role of ideas, it is important to remember that they come in a variety of scopes and levels of abstractness. As forces in the politics of reform, ideas have a part shaped by context. The role of ideas in the local setting is quite different from their role in media-infused battles at the national level. Local arenas are frequently nonpartisan, with actors focused on immediate concerns, daily demands, and scarce resources. Because concrete actions may be more important than ideological posture, mass persuasion may be of less concern than enlistment of scattered cadres of task-specific activists.Clarence Stone is Research Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at George Washington and Professor Emeritus, University of Maryland (cstone@gvpt.umd.edu). Marion Orr is Frederick Lippitt Professor of Public Policy and Professor of Political Science and Urban Studies, Brown University (Marion_Orr@brown.edu). Donn Worgs is Assistant Professor of Political Science and Director of Metropolitan Studies, Towson University (dworgs@ towson.edu). The authors wish to thank three anonymous reviewers for extraordinarily helpful comments.

Type
Research Article
Information
Perspectives on Politics , Volume 4 , Issue 3 , September 2006 , pp. 529 - 546
Copyright
© 2006 American Political Science Association

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