Preparing for socio-technical transitions: Opportunities and challenges for policy design

• Main Authors: NAIR, Sreeja, TAEIHAGH, Araz
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2017
• Subjects: Policy Design; Socio-technical systesm; socio-technical transitions; network-centric design; nmcda; Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration; Strategic Management Policy
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2381; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/soss_research/article/3638/viewcontent/593f7fb8169e2.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Effective policy mixes are expected to accommodate uncertainties in the future policy context by being flexible and adapt over time in expectation of a range of anticipated and unanticipated conditions. In response to shifts in the future policy context, while policy changes can manifest as increments to status quo over time, policymakers may also need to face the possibility of making major policy shifts to enable the transition into more appropriate policy regimes. In the context of socio-technical transitions, the switch to new policy alternatives can be facilitated by incorporating new policy actions into the suite of current policy strategies early on, which can also help accommodate the long lead-times on some decisions and actions. This paper is a conceptual piece that focuses on integrating policy design thinking into the crafting of conscious policy choices and mixes to enable socio-technical transitions while considering the likely changes in the future policy context.