Global Ideas and Modern Public Sector Reforms: A Theoretical Elaboration and Empirical Discussion of a Neoinstitutional Theory

The neoinstitutional theory of global ideas formulated by organization theory experts at Stanford University and also espoused by some Scandinavian researchers postulates a formalized, rationalized, and standardized organizational template created through cultural and macrosocial processes that spreads around the world. This template is said to fit everywhere, regardless of national and local preconditions, creating isomorphy between public organizations, but not having much real influence on practice. This article elaborates the theory, discussing it in relation to two alternative theories-an instrumental and an old institutional one, and looks at whether it matches the findings of comparative studies of two reform waves-New Public Management (NPM) and post-NPM.