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The limits of influence: foreign policy think tanks in Britain and the USA*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 October 2009

Richard Higgott  and
Diane Stone
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Extract

International non–governmental organizations and their influence over policy in international relations have become subjects of scholarly attention in recent years. One sector of the international policy-cum-analytic community that has received little attention, however, is that group of nationally based non-profit independent policy research institutes—popularly known as ‘think tanks’. This is a strange omission. Foreign policy think tanks and institutes of international affairs are of interest to the wider debates in international relations for two reasons. On the one hand, they aspire to be participants—if mostly marginal ones—in the foreign policy making process. On the other hand, notwithstanding the tension between these two roles, some contribute directly to international relations as a field of study. Yet a common theme prevails. All foreign policy institutes are founded upon a conviction that ideas are important. Researchers and executives of institutes, as well as their corporate, government and foundation supporters, often believe that their intellectual input into policy debates makes a difference. While this can be the case, we suggest that it is less so than many advocates often assume.

Type
Research Article
Information
Review of International Studies , Volume 20 , Issue 1 , January 1994 , pp. 15 - 34
Copyright
Copyright © British International Studies Association 1994

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References

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