Regional Policy Spaces, Knowledge Networks, and the “Nordic Other”

Volmari , Saija; Sivesind, Kirsten; Jónasson, Jón Torfi; Karseth, Berit; Sivesind, Kirsten; Steiner-Khamsi, Gita

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Regional Policy Spaces, Knowledge Networks, and the “Nordic Other”

Title:	Regional Policy Spaces, Knowledge Networks, and the “Nordic Other”
Author:	Volmari , Saija Sivesind, Kirsten Jónasson, Jón Torfi orcid.org/0000-0001-7580-3033 Karseth, Berit Sivesind, Kirsten Steiner-Khamsi, Gita 6 authors Show fewer authors
Date:	2022-04-02
Language:	English
Scope:	349-382
University/Institute:	University of Iceland
School:	Education
ISBN:	978-3-030-91958-0 978-3-030-91959-7
Series:	Evidence and Expertise in Nordic Education Policy; ()
DOI:	https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91959-7
Subject:	Policy space; Knowledge network; Nordic cooperation; Evidenve-based policy; Expert interviews
URI:	https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11815/4156
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Citation: Volmari , S , Sivesind , K & Jónasson , J T 2022 , Regional Policy Spaces, Knowledge Networks, and the “Nordic Other” . in B Karseth , K Sivesind & G Steiner-Khamsi (eds) , Evidence and Expertise in Nordic Education Policy : A Comparative Network Analysis . Palgrave Macmillan Cham , pp. 349-382 . https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91959-7
Abstract: This chapter examines the use of regional policy knowledge and the importance of Nordic cooperation in the latest education reforms in Finland, Iceland, and Norway. By drawing on interviews and bibliometric network analysis, the authors demonstrate that policymakers do not consider knowledge sources from other Nordic countries as essentially prominent. The authors offer four explanatory narratives for this finding and coin the concept the “Nordic Other” as various mindsets of experts that vary in different settings of cooperation. In the international policy space, a coalition based on a Nordic consensus is of core importance, while in the regional space, policymakers utilize knowledge to explore national solutions to common problems. Therefore, Nordic cooperation has various functions in terms of evidence-based policymaking that depend on the context in which collaboration takes place.