Institutional Reproduction and Change

Abstract

This article examines the theories of institutional reproduction and stability, which focus predominantly on the concept of path dependence. It discusses theories of institutional change and does so at great length because this is where comparative institutional analysis has had the most to offer. The article addresses briefly the ontology of institutional change and concentrates primarily on political–economic institutions in advanced capitalist democracies. It focuses on literatures in comparative political economy and organizational analysis rather than, for instance, social movements theory, which is also interested in institutional stability and change, but not necessarily with respect to the sorts of political–economic institutions that are of primary concern in this article. The article concludes with a few remarks about where the study of institutional reproduction and change seems to be headed.