Beliefs, social identity, and the view of opponents in Swedish carnivore management policy

Jens Nilsson (), Annica Sandström and Daniel Nohrstedt
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Jens Nilsson: Luleå University of Technology
Annica Sandström: Luleå University of Technology
Daniel Nohrstedt: Uppsala University

Policy Sciences, 2020, vol. 53, issue 3, No 5, 453-472

Abstract: Abstract In the policy sciences, the intractability of disputes in natural resource governance is commonly explained in terms of a “devil shift” between rival policy coalitions. In a devil shift, policy actors overestimate the power of their opponents and exaggerate the differences between their own and their opponents’ policy beliefs. While the devil shift is widely recognized in policy research, knowledge of its causes and solutions remains limited. Drawing insights from the advocacy coalition framework and social identity theory, we empirically explore beliefs and social identity as two potential drivers of the devil shift. Next, we investigate the potential of collaborative venues to decrease the devil shift over time. These assumptions are tested through statistical analyses of longitudinal survey data targeting actors involved in three policy subsystems within Swedish large carnivore management. Our evidence shows, first, that the devil shift is more pronounced if coalitions are defined by shared beliefs rather than by shared identity. Second, our study shows that participation in collaborative venues does not reduce the devil shift over time. We end by proposing methodological and theoretical steps to advance knowledge of the devil shift in contested policy subsystems.

Keywords: Coalitions; Devil shift; Beliefs; Social identity; Wildlife (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:policy:v:53:y:2020:i:3:d:10.1007_s11077-020-09380-5

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DOI: 10.1007/s11077-020-09380-5

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