Institutionalization and performance of policy analysis and evaluation in the Netherlands

This concluding chapter reflects on lessons from the various chapters in the book, and positions the Dutch case in an international perspective. The Dutch case reflects broader international trends such as the rationalization and scientification of politics and policymaking the 1960s and 1970s. Also, the revival of interest in ‘evidence-based policymaking’ in the last few years and the growing contestation of knowledge claims are not exceptional to the Netherlands. However, what does seem exceptional is the degree of institutionalization: few countries have such a strongly institutionalized research-policy nexus and so many institutional ‘boundary organizations’ as the Netherlands. The very specifically Dutch system of ‘planning bureaus’ is perhaps the best example of this. This institutionalization is also reflected in Dutch academia. What is more, over the past decades Dutch scholars have also played a leading role in the development of institutional and interpretative modes of policy analysis in particular.