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Policy mix: mess or merit?

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  • J. A. Bouma
  • M. Verbraak
  • F. Dietz
  • R. Brouwer

Abstract

Many researchers and policy makers have called for optimal policy mixes to address major issues such as climate change and biodiversity conservation. This paper i) screens and reviews the wider academic literature to define the concept of policy mixes; ii) discusses the justifications for using a policymix and iii) explores the methodologies for evaluating them. In defining a policymix we distinguish between policy objective mixes and policy instrument mixes. Justifications for policy objective mixes generally lie in the domain of distributional concerns and other political issues, whereas justifications for policy instrument mixes are mostly related to specific market, governance or behavioural failures. We reflect on the different justifications and discuss their role in policy mix design and evaluation. We consider the challenges of policy mix evaluation and discuss the potential of experimental methods for policy evaluation and design. We conclude that the design and evaluation of policy mixes requires a mix of methods, since no single method can effectively assess the various welfare impacts of different policy instruments. In addition, we recommend that a policymix evaluation starts by disentangling the different policy objectives, means and instruments in order to be able to define, justify and assess the societal impact and cost-effectiveness of policy instrument design.

Suggested Citation

  • J. A. Bouma & M. Verbraak & F. Dietz & R. Brouwer, 2019. "Policy mix: mess or merit?," Journal of Environmental Economics and Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(1), pages 32-47, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:teepxx:v:8:y:2019:i:1:p:32-47
    DOI: 10.1080/21606544.2018.1494636
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    Cited by:

    1. Takala, Tuomo & Brockhaus, Maria & Hujala, Teppo & Tanskanen, Minna & Lehtinen, Ari & Tikkanen, Jukka & Toppinen, Anne, 2022. "Discursive barriers to voluntary biodiversity conservation: The case of Finnish forest owners," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    2. Haiyan Liu & Roy Brouwer, 2023. "What is the future of water quality trading?," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 41(1), pages 194-217, January.
    3. Alain‐Désiré Nimubona & Jean‐Christophe Pereau, 2022. "Negotiating over payments for wetland ecosystem services," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 55(3), pages 1507-1538, August.
    4. Margarita Ignatyeva & Vera Yurak & Alexey Dushin & Vladimir Strovsky & Sergey Zavyalov & Alexander Malyshev & Polina Karimova, 2021. "How Far Away Are World Economies from Circularity: Assessing the Capacity of Circular Economy Policy Packages in the Operation of Raw Materials and Industrial Wastes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-15, April.
    5. Andrea M. Bassi & Valeria Costantini & Elena Paglialunga, 2021. "Modelling the European Union Sustainability Transition: A Soft-Linking Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-24, June.
    6. Anat Gofen & Adam M. Wellstead & Noa Tal, 2023. "Devil in the details? Policy settings and calibrations of national excellence-centers," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 56(2), pages 301-323, June.
    7. Hoyle, Aaron & Peters, Jotham & Jaccard, Mark & Rhodes, Ekaterina, 2024. "Additional or accidental? Simulating interactions between a low-carbon fuel standard and other climate policy instruments in Canada," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    8. Foramitti, Joël & Savin, Ivan & van den Bergh, Jeroen C.J.M., 2021. "Emission tax vs. permit trading under bounded rationality and dynamic markets," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 148(PB).
    9. Montoya-Zumaeta, Javier G. & Wunder, Sven & Tacconi, Luca, 2021. "Incentive-based conservation in Peru: Assessing the state of six ongoing PES and REDD+ initiatives," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    10. Greco, Marco & Germani, Francesca & Grimaldi, Michele & Radicic, Dragana, 2022. "Policy mix or policy mess? Effects of cross-instrumental policy mix on eco-innovation in German firms," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    11. Qiao Wang & Shiyun Chen & Hongtao Yi, 2024. "A Two-Stage Evaluation of China’s New Energy Industrial Policy Package," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-21, September.
    12. Francesco Mantino & Francesco Vanni, 2019. "Policy Mixes as a Strategy to Provide More Effective Social and Environmental Benefits: Evidence from Six Rural Areas in Europe," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-17, November.

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