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Substantive and Political Learning among the US States: Abortion Policy Diffusion, 1993–2016

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 September 2022

Isaac Pollert  and
Christopher Z. Mooney Open the ORCID record for Christopher Z. Mooney [Opens in a new window]
Isaac Pollert
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, Penn State University, State College, PA
Christopher Z. Mooney*
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, USA
*
Corresponding author: Christopher Z. Mooney, email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Do policymakers learn from the policy experiences of other governments, and if so, what do they learn? A long-established normative claim suggests that intergovernmental learning can and should occur among the US states, which serve as “laboratories of democracy” for the nation. We put this claim to a tough test, comparing the influences on the diffusion of instrumental Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP) laws with that of more symbolic abortion regulation, from 1993 to 2016. We find evidence of substantive intergovernmental learning in policy diffusion even for abortion regulation—but only for instrumental abortion regulation. On symbolic abortion policy, states appear to learn mainly political lessons. Furthermore, proponents and opponents appear to learn different lessons in these diffusions, with loss aversion motivating opponents especially highly. Our results suggest that policymakers have a sophisticated understanding of the differences among policies’ goals and act strategically in pursuit of those goals.

Keywords

policy diffusionabortion regulationstate policypolicy learningmorality policy
Type
Original Article
Information
State Politics & Policy Quarterly , Volume 22 , Issue 3 , September 2022 , pp. 320 - 343
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American Political Science Association

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