Jarle Trondal

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Agencification in the EU Multilevel Administrative System. In Knodt, Michele; Chaban, Natalia; Costa, Oriol & Muller, Patrick (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of European Union Politics. Routledge. ISSN 9781032786247. p. 340–355. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter outlines the agency phenomenon in the European Union (EU), and notably the role of agencies in multilevel administrative systems. While doing so, the ambition of this chapter is also to provide general knowledge on agencies and agencification in multilevel administrative systems. While extant literature of multilevel administrative systems and governance has offered useful conceptual maps, it has been caught in conceptual mapping and empirical probing. This chapter therefore suggests ways of moving forward by analyzing governing processes in multilevel administrative systems and doing so zooming in on the role of agencies. The chapter reviews scholarly debates on the evolving EU executive order, agencification of executive governance in general and of the EU in particular. This chapter also offers a cursory review of important theories of agencification and implications of agencification both for political steering and agency autonomy and polity formation beyond the state.

• Riddervold, Marianne; Trondal, Jarle & Newsome, Akasemi (2026). Crisis and Resilience in the European Union. In Knodt, Michele; Chaban, Natalia; Costa, Oriol & Muller, Patrick (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of European Union Politics. Routledge. ISSN 9781032786247. p. 124–135. doi: 10.4324/9781003488736-11. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The COVID-19 and the security crisis, caused by the Russian war against Ukraine and reinforced by changing US foreign policies under Trump, have put the European Union (EU) under profound stress as it took place on the heels of recent, multiple, overlapping crises. This chapter has two main ambitions and contributions: first, the chapter outlines three conceptual models of EU crisis responses, and secondly illustrates the EU's response to the COVID-19 and security crises. Rather than breaking down, the chapter suggests that the EU has become resilient to crises owing to its ability to adapt and absorb crisis through already-established integration processes. Future research should further theorize meso-level mechanisms that may lead to particular outcomes identified in the conceptual models, and on how functional capabilities for risk prevention and crisis handling might have long-term unintended consequences.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Conclusion and outlooks. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 506–514. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00046. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter summarizes key observations from the handbook and outlines some avenues for future research. These are a plea towards theorizing international bureaucracies, analyzing international bureaucracies in multilevel governance systems, studying the geographical and physical locus of international bureaucracies, and finally, methodological advances.

• Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2026). “As hard as it gets”: the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 493–505. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00045. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The United Kingdom's departure from the European Union (EU) represents a watershed moment for the study and practice of international bureaucracy. This chapter sketches an international bureaucracy perspective to the growing body of literature that examines Brexit as a case of differentiated disintegration. It investigates how the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the EU necessitated extensive administrative reconfigurations, which we conceive of as administrative differentiation, in critical policy domains such as, for example, trade, immigration, and border control, areas previously governed within EU frameworks. The chapter highlights the pivotal role of international bureaucracy in managing these transitions amid domestic and geopolitical pressures, including challenges to continuity in security and defence cooperation during the protracted Brexit. The chapter posits that administrative differentiation has helped alleviate some of the Brexit-triggered disruptions by way of fostering adaptive strategies within UK-EU relations. It concludes with a discussion on the broader implications of Brexit for international collaboration, emphasizing the persistent complexities of managing interdependence in an era where international relations are increasingly defined by both differentiated integration and disintegration.

• Tieku, Thomas; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2026). Narrowing the gap: international bureaucracies in the ‘Global South’. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 391–410. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00038. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Over the past decades, the rise of executive authority on the global stage has instigated scholarly interest in international bureaucracies (IBs). In particular, the scope and depth of IB autonomy have come to the forefront of attention. This literature has asked what role IBs may potentially assume in a world increasingly characterized by transnational challenges, risks and opportunities associated with the volatility in international trade, security or climate change. While theorizing IBs is still in statu nascendi, there is also an empirical gap. Whereas scholars have addressed this phenomenon extensively within organizations such as the European Union (EU) or the system of the United Nations (UN), studies outside the ‘Western world’ remain remarkably scant. This chapter seeks to address this problem by providing an organizational approach to understand the scope of autonomy that IBs may enjoy. Drawing on research by the authors, it suggests a multiple proxy analysis that maps the behavior of IB staff in non-Western IBs. Benefiting from two original surveys conducted with international civil servants of the Commissions of the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), this chapter suggests that IBs of the Global North and Global South are fairly similar.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Comparative approaches to international bureaucracies. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 332–346. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00034. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter addresses two questions: (1) To what extent do international civil servants abide by multiple behavioural logics, and (2) does a logic of hierarchy profoundly penetrate international bureaucracies, or is it overwhelmed by a logic of portfolio? The chapter compares these behavioural logics within three international bureaucracies: the European Commission, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Secretariat and the World Trade Organization (WTO) Secretariat. The chapter suggests that the logic of hierarchy is mainly evident in the Commission administration, and only marginally in the OECD and WTO Secretariats. Moreover, within the Commission, the logic of hierarchy is primarily observed at the executive centre and marginally in administrative subunits. Concomitantly, a logic of hierarchy, when observed, does not seem to profoundly penetrate international bureaucracies but is modified by internal organizational boundaries. The portfolio logic is overwhelmingly present within the policy departments of international bureaucracies.

• Trondal, Jarle & Marcussen, Martin (2026). Coordination. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 248–260. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00027. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter examines the challenge of coordinating international bureaucracies and offers empirical illustrations from the OECD secretariat. International bureaucracies are rifted between member-state dominance, the concern for the collective good, administrative ‘siloization’ and portfolio concerns, as well as transnational regulatory institutions driven by epistemic communities of experts. Consequently, academics, politicians and international civil servants offer conflicting views on the independent and coordinated role of international bureaucracies. This chapter shows how the OECD secretariat is profoundly rifted between integration and fragmentation, autonomy and dependency, and between classic macroeconomics and ‘neo-economics’. Part of this reflects that an established international bureaucracy is still in the making.

• Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (2026). Turbulence, robustness and international organizations. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 220–234. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00025. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  International relations research has long noted the significance of turbulence for international organizations and their bureaucracies, and recent developments in global governance can be expected to intensify this turbulence. This chapter examines how international bureaucracies can continue to operate “robustly” to uphold their missions, agendas, and values in the face of variable and rapidly changing conditions and challenges. Building on recent public administration research, five structural and strategic principles are identified that may help international bureaucracies to respond robustly to turbulent conditions: alertness to surprise, keeping your options open, flexible adaptation, real-time innovation, and rapid scaling and collaboration. A review of existing research on international organizations, international bureaucracies, and international secretariats with respect to these five basic principles of robust governance finds much relevant research but few efforts to relate this research to the theme of turbulence.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Organization theory. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 122–135. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00017. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  As public administration at the international level serves as a backbone to organized global politics, it is crucial to theorize the organizational element of international bureaucracies. Yet, the long and winding road of public administration research has insufficiently theorized administrative systems above and beyond the state. One unresolved question is under what conditions international bureaucracies may formulate their own policies with significant consequences for world society. This chapter aims to fill this void by outlining an organization theory approach for the study of international bureaucracies. The chapter argues that studies of public administration beyond the state may generally benefit from theorizing the organizational element of administrative life. The study outlines distinct propositions for future studies.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Introduction to the study of international bureaucracies. In Trondal, Jarle (Eds.), Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035310241. p. 2–23. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258.00009. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter introduces the handbook's ambitions and contribution to extant literature. It does so by reviewing the state-of-the-art literature on international bureaucracies. By offering a cursory review of past and contemporary literature, this chapter also identifies how the handbook adds value vis-à-vis conventional wisdom. This chapter closes by offering an overview of the contents of the handbook.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Supranationalism. In Biondi, Andrea & Ștefan, Oana (Ed.), Elgar Encyclopedia of European Law. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800885233. p. 760–770. doi: 10.4337/9781800885240.suprantionalism. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Does the European Commission (Commission) manage to transform and redirect the loyalties and roles played by Commission civil servants? Does supranational emerge over time outside or inside the Commission, or is it due to organizational design by the Commission? This entry explores the old neo-functionalist claim on loyalty transfer (Ruggie et al. 2005). It argues that supranationalism may be due to processes of both dynamics of socialization and organizational design. The transformative effects of the Commission are assessed by the extent to which Commission staff adopt a supranational role perception (actor-level supranationalism). Actor-level supranationalism may strengthen the autonomy of the Commission vis-à-vis member-state governments, enabling the Commission’s to upgrade common interests, to make co-ordinated decision-making processes and curtailing inter-departmental conflicts. To illustrate the argument, we use seconded Commission officials (SNEs) as a least-likely case of actor-level supranationalism. They represent a least likely case because they are less strongly embedded and into exposed to the Commission compared to permanent Commission officials....

• Ansell, Christopher; Trondal, Jarle; Riddervold, Marianne & Newsome, Akasemi (2025). Meso-Level Dynamics of Crisis in the European Union. Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy (RHCPP). 16(4), p. 1–10. doi: 10.1002/rhc3.70048. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This special issue calls for a deeper examination of the meso‐level dynamics of crisis, using the European Union (EU) as a living laboratory to explore and define what a meso‐level analysis of crisis entails. Here, such analysis is understood as the study of processes, institutions, and mechanisms that lie between—or cut across—(a) grand theories of European integration and (b) explanations focused on the immediate, short‐term responses of EU or member‐state crisis management institutions to specific crises. This introductory article provides initial support for a meso‐level research agenda on EU crises. We frame how the EU is perceived through the analytical lens of crisis and provide a theoretically‐oriented statement of why it is valuable to study the EU through such a lens. We then summarize the main contributions from each individual contributions to this special issue and conclude with a brief statement of what we learn about meso‐level analysis of EU crises from them.

• Shyrokykh, Karina & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Stable roles and agile structures: Temporal robustness in public administration networks. Public Policy and Administration. ISSN 0952-0767. doi: 10.1177/09520767251410845. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The pursuit of public governance by public administration institutions requires the requisite expertise, which may be in short supply. We offer a novel study of expertise mobilization in trans-governmental administrative networks and ask: How is administrative expertise shared in European trans-governmental networks, and what explains the structure of interactions and the over-time dynamics? We answer these questions by theorizing and empirically analyzing interactions among European Union member states in the Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument. Established by the European Commission, its purpose is to assist member states in implementing and enforcing the EU acquis. We develop a theoretical framework on temporal robustness of administrative networks, which encompasses networks’ ability to combine stability and change over time. We demonstrate that trans-governmental administrative networks allow for the coexistence of stable roles of member states within agile network structures, even amid political perturbations and discontinuities.

• Kolltveit, Kristoffer & Trondal, Jarle (2025). The Norwegian Central Government: A Robust Yet Adaptive Apparatus. In Kolltveit, Kristoffer; Allern, Elin Haugsgjerd; Braut-Hegghammer, Målfrid & Rasch, Bjørn Erik (Ed.), Oxford Handbook of Norwegian Politics. Oxford University Press. ISSN 9780198888581. p. 120–136. doi: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198888581.013.0007. Full text in Research Archive
• Aars, Jacob; Bach, Tobias & Trondal, Jarle (2025). The value of paired and longitudinal surveys in public administration research. International Review of Administrative Sciences. ISSN 0020-8523. 91(4), p. 489–505. doi: 10.1177/00208523251371611. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Surveys among bureaucrats are a widely used tool of data collection in public administration research. However, survey researchers in public administration are facing various challenges, such as declining response rates among bureaucrat respondents and limited respondent pools. Moreover, researchers seeking to establish robust empirical evidence on the drivers of bureaucrats’ behaviour and attitudes encounter difficulties in collecting longitudinal individual-level data. This article argues that the research community should collectively address these challenges and demonstrates one way to achieve this: by establishing a researcher-driven survey infrastructure. We present such a novel survey infrastructure that may serve as a prototype for implementing this research agenda worldwide. We illustrate the innovative potential of combining longitudinal and paired research designs that involve parallel surveys of relevant stakeholders, including politicians and citizens. Finally, the article discusses dilemmas and trade-offs in the operation of survey infrastructures for public administration research.

• Trondal, Jarle & Proszowska, Dominika (2025). Political trust: a multilevel governance perspective. In Six, Frederique; Hamm, Joseph; Latusek, Dominika; Zimmeren, Esther van & Verhoest, Koen (Ed.), Handbook on Trust in Public Governance. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781802201390. doi: 10.4337/9781802201406.00019. Full text in Research Archive
• Stenvall, Jari; Pinheiro, Romulo; Johanson, Jan-Erik; Pekkola, Elias; Trondal, Jarle & Rannisto, Pasi-Heikki (2025). Governing uncertainty by anticipating risk: assessing crisis management during COVID-19. In Pekkola, Elias; Johanson, Jan-Erik; Mikkonen, Marjukka; Stenvall, Jari & Siirtola, Emmi (Ed.), Future Public Governance and Global Crises: Nordic Perspectives. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035318667. p. 137–156. doi: 10.4337/9781035318674.00019. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter takes stock of anticipatory practices in the context of governmental responses to unanticipated crisis situations, using the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study. It pays particular attention to the role of public decision-making within the context of anticipatory governance. Practices are connected to policy instruments and ultimately to an understanding of the role of the state as well as to fundamental assumptions about how state agencies (at multiple levels) ought to respond to emerging crises. Empirically, we base our analysis on 42 semi-structured interviews with key actors in the Finnish central administration working with government responses to COVID-19. The results show the centrality of bounded rationality in handling risks in data management, problem-solving, and decision-making. The findings offer key insights into the causes, processes, and consequences of crisis management within government in the context of complex and evolving governance systems during periods of turbulence.

• Abrahamsen, Stian Reme; Riddervold, Marianne & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Crisis and “Institutional Hubbing” in the European Union. Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy (RHCPP). 16(3). doi: 10.1002/rhc3.70019. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This study asks how crisis affects institutional designs and offers a study of crisis coordination mechanisms in the European Union (EU). Studies have suggested that crisis tends to strengthen the role of the member states in the EU. New intergovernmentalist literature in particular suggests that member states take a leading role in dealing with crises through consensus-seeking deliberation in search for common solutions. Our study challenges this argument by identifying how crises lead to a de facto strengthening of the executive authority of the Commission by “hubbing” meso-level hybrid coordination mechanisms. The article sides with institutionalist literature arguing that the rise of new coordination instruments in the EU enables the Commission to leverage its executive power. The data demonstrate an extensive growth of hybrid coordination mechanisms which has increased the agenda setting, coordinating, and implementing role of the Commission, which is conducive to crisis-induced strengthening of executive power of the Commission.

• Ansell, Christopher; Breimo, Janne Paulsen; Lo, Christian; Sørensen, Eva; Trondal, Jarle & Torfing, Jacob (2025). Robust governance of societal turbulence - today and tomorrow. In Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), Robust Public Governance in a Turbulent Era. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781803928791. p. 163–181. doi: 10.4337/9781803928807.00013. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle & Lo, Christian (2025). Turbulence as a challenge to public governance. In Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), Robust Public Governance in a Turbulent Era. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781803928791. p. 13–26. doi: https:/www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/robust-public-governance-in-a-turbulent-era-9781803928791.html?srsltid=AfmBOoryBJ-8jb9GA_lnus6Wokq7NL8tau5vx3LS0ZjvWYqNFlTxpE0q. Full text in Research Archive
• Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (2025). The challenge of societal turbulence and the need for robust public governance. In Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), Robust Public Governance in a Turbulent Era. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781803928791. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2025). Robustness and the study of hybrid governance. In Vakkuri, Jarmo Jouko Kalervo (Eds.), Public Policies for Hybrid Governance. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035311620. Full text in Research Archive
• Birkeland, Terese & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Stakeholder involvement in the European Union policy-making : a study of consultation regimes of the European Commission. Comparative European Politics. ISSN 1472-4790. 23, p. 966–986. doi: 10.1057/s41295-025-00429-4. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  To pursue its task as an open and engaged policy-maker, the European Commission (Commission) engages with a complex set of stakeholders. This study demonstrates how the consultation behaviour of the Commission administration reflects both the structural design of the Commission and stakeholder groups and the temporality of the consultation process. The study shows that these factors accompanied two conceptually distinct consultation patterns, coined consultative contraction and consultative detraction. Empirically, the study measures how Commission officials engaged with stakeholders when formulating the battery regulatory proposal of 2020. The proposal contains elements of both old and new regulatory provisions being merged into a single legal instrument where two Directorate-Generals (DGs), DG Environment (ENV) and DG Growth (Grow), share the responsibility of formulating the proposal that indeed encompass the entire battery value chain. The study characterizes the Commission’s consultation regime as a two-stage process, with an initial stage of consultative detraction followed by a stage of consultative contraction. The study moreover finds that these consultation patterns reflected the organizational design of the Commission administration, the organizational capacity of the involved stakeholders, and the temporality of the consultation process.

• Kühn, Nadja Sophia Bekkelund; Radlick, Rebecca Lynn & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Crisis and Bureaucratic Discretion: How Bureaucratic Scandals Shape Discretionary Attention Among Government Officials. Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy (RHCPP). 16(3). doi: 10.1002/rhc3.70014. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This study examines the distribution of discretionary attention among government officials facing contexts characterized by urgency and ambiguity. Specifically, researching discretionary distribution among government officials 4 years after a severe crisis, the paper offers novel knowledge of postcrisis effects. The study identifies five conceptual dimensions of discretionary distribution and applies meso-level theorizing to account for observed variations. The research context is the Norwegian Welfare and Labor Administration that faced an administrative scandal in 2019 due to successive governments' misinterpretation and mishandling of European Union regulations, resulting in the illegal imprisonment of welfare beneficiaries. Benefiting from novel survey data (N = 466), the study demonstrates that this scandal left postcrisis effects on the discretionary distribution among agency officials, and that these effects were meditated by the organizational design of the administrative apparatus.

• Maggetti, Martino; Verhoest, Koen; Trondal, Jarle; Proszowska, Dominika & Schomaker, Rahel (2025). Trust in multilevel governance settings: examining the congruence hypothesis for actors in regulatory regimes. Journal of European Public Policy. ISSN 1350-1763. doi: 10.1080/13501763.2025.2517296. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This article focuses on trust dynamics across levels of governance in European regulatory regimes, making three contributions. First, it theorises trust relationships in multilevel political orders, by extending and adapting the congruence hypothesis originally developed to explain citizens’ trust in European Union (EU) institutions. Second, it outlines a novel dataset derived from an original survey collected in nine European countries and three sectors: data protection, finance, and food safety. This unique dataset enables an in-depth examination of previously underexplored multilevel trust dynamics of regime actors and the investigation of hypotheses regarding the underlying mechanisms. Third, our findings empirically validate the congruence hypothesis: the perceived trustworthiness of core national regulatory agencies is positively associated with trust in EU-level bodies. Furthermore, our study shows that congruence dynamics are stronger for central regime actors compared to peripheral ones. Sectoral patterns are also highlighted: As expected, congruence dynamics are weaker in recently established regulatory regimes, such as data protection, compared to more institutionalised sectors like finance and food safety. Lastly, congruence is notably stronger for actors from non-EU countries, aligning with our expectations regarding the influential role of heuristics.

• Andrejuk, Katarzyna; Fjørtoft, Trym Nohr; Parsons, Craig Alexander; Schmidt, Susanne; Smith, Andy & Trondal, Jarle (2025). American Services in European Perspective: Why Do Americans Not Care about Interstate Barriers in Construction? Publius: The Journal of Federalism. ISSN 0048-5950. 55(4), p. 732–758. doi: 10.1093/publius/pjaf027. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The European Union identifies the sector of construction services as a priority for its agenda to remove barriers to cross-border activity. Taking the EU’s efforts as a starting point, this article explores the politics of interstate barriers in construction services in the United States. To what extent do US construction firms encounter internal-border barriers like those targeted by the EU? If they do, how much business mobilization and governmental response do they elicit, and what does that suggest about American federalism more generally? We find many similar barriers inside the United States but practically no mobilization or policy attention around them. Drawing on over fifty interviews with firms, associations, and public officials, we argue that this contrast to the EU highlights two features of American federalism. Institutionally, though promoting a national market motivated the federation’s creation, that goal is nobody’s active job today. Ideationally, the distinctively American skepticism of central government limits a market-building project.

• Andrejuk, Katarzyna; Fjørtoft, Trym Nohr; Parsons, Craig Alexander; Schmidt, Susanne; Smith, Andy & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Federal Spirits: Single Markets in Goods in the United States and the European Union and the Case of Spirits Drinks. Publius: The Journal of Federalism. ISSN 0048-5950. 55(4), p. 759–786. doi: 10.1093/publius/pjaf033. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This article compares the politics of internal market governance in the European Union and the United States by focusing on a shippable but highly regulated “sin” good: distilled spirits. A few generations ago, both arenas governed spirits in highly decentralized and varied ways. Over time, Europe has centralized regulation to increase market openness while the United States has seen little change. Today regulatory differences between American states create higher barriers to trade than those which persist among their European counterparts. Drawing on 102 interviews with firms, associations, and public officials, we explain this divergence by two factors: institutions and ideas. The EU’s institutional agents have encouraged market openness, including mobilizing pro-liberalization European businesses, while American firms have no similar public allies. Ideationally, European businesspeople are broadly comfortable with centralized enforcement of single market rules, while Americans view federal enforcement as unrealistic or illegitimate.

• Andersen, Johan Erik & Trondal, Jarle (2024). From exclusion to establishment: Organizational birthmarks and imprinting within populist parties. Scandinavian Political Studies. ISSN 0080-6757. 47(2), p. 97–281. doi: 10.1111/1467-9477.12272. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This paper bridges literature on political parties and organizational studies by providing a new theoretical lens on political party developments. There has been growing scholarly interest in populist parties and the issues that serve as the raison d'être for their political platform. While the literature has been preoccupied with the journey of the anti-hero rising to power, less has been written about the organization of the party once it has transcended to political influence. Likewise, whereas organizational birthmarks and imprinting have been integral concepts in the study of organizations, there has been little permeation of the concepts into the study of political parties. The Danish People's Party and Norwegian Progress Party provide two illustrative cases, showing that their original formation and later transformation into the current parties brought with it challenges to their structure and ideology. Our findings show that while an increase in external support to the political party, that is, votes, imprints organizational birthmarks, it is during a decrease in the very same external support that organizational birthmarks are uncovered and challenged. Through process-tracing and our theoretical model, we identify organizational birthmarks and causal mechanisms in which competing organizational birthmarks create an internal division within the political party.

• Fossum, John Erik; Olsen, Espen D. H. & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Norges forhold til EU: Hvorfor fokusere på autonomi? Norsk statsvitenskapelig tidsskrift. ISSN 0801-1745. 40(1), p. 8–25. doi: 10.18261/nst.40.1.2. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  I dagens Europa som preges av kompleks gjensidig avhengighet, argumenterer vi for at tette tilknytningsformer, som Norge har til EU, best kan analyseres utfra begrepet autonomi. Dette begrepet omfatter handlingsrom og er langt mer dekkende for å forstå Norges relasjon enn suverenitet og uavhengighet. Norges EU-relasjon er ikke bare tett, men kompleks og sammensatt. En slik tilknytningsform bidrar til å gjøre makt og ansvarsforhold uklare, uforutsigbare og usikre, hvilket medfører at analysene av tilknytningsformens konsekvenser best forstås ved å anvende begreper som kan gradere og skalere effekter. Artikkelen introduserer og utlegger derfor et nytt begrepsapparat forankret i autonomi, statlig så vel som individuell. Gjennom to empiriske illustrasjoner viser artikkelen hvilke begrensninger Norges forhold til EU legger på statlig autonomi, samt hvor komplisert forholdet er mellom statlig og individuell autonomi i dagens kontekst preget av kompleks (asymmetrisk) gjensidig avhengighet. Today’s Europe is marked by complex interdependence. That entails that tight EU affiliations such as Norway’s are best analyzed by means of the notion of autonomy. This term is more suitable than sovereignty and independence and includes albeit is more encompassing than wriggle-room. Norway’s EU affiliation is not only very close; it is also complex and composite. Such a mode of affiliation makes relations of power and responsibility unclear, unpredictable and uncertain and requires concepts that enable us to gradate and scale effects. The article introduces and develops a new conceptual apparatus steeped in autonomy – state as well as individual. By means of two empirical illustrations the article shows the constraints that Norway’s EU affiliations impose on state autonomy, and how complex the relationship is between state and individual autonomy in today’s context marked as it is by complex interdependence.

• Novelli, Claudio; Hacker, Philipp; Morley, Jessica; Trondal, Jarle & Floridi, Luciano (2024). A Robust Governance for the AI Act: AI Office, AI Board, Scientific Panel, and National Authorities. European Journal of Risk Regulation. ISSN 1867-299X. 16, p. 566–590. doi: 10.1017/err.2024.57. Full text in Research Archive
• Malmborg, Frans August Runo af & Trondal, Jarle (2024). AI and the logics of public sector organizations. In Paul, Regine; Carmel, Emma & Cobbe, Jennifer (Ed.), Handbook on Public Policy and Artificial Intelligence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781803922164. p. 66–79. Full text in Research Archive
• Krogstad, Julie Runde & Trondal, Jarle (2024). The Hierarchical Configurations of Policy Networks: A Study of Decision-Making Processes in Urban Transport. Administration & Society. ISSN 0095-3997. 56(6), p. 763–785. doi: 10.1177/00953997241246056. Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Sub-national bureaucracies in the European administrative space. Journal of European Integration. ISSN 0703-6337. p. 1–17. doi: 10.1080/07036337.2024.2424216. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  An important stream of research has developed focusing on the embedding of national central government institutions into an emerging multilevel European Union (EU) administration. The role of sub-national governmental institutions within this integrated administration has however received relatively little attention. Assuming that sub-national bureaucracies are key vehicles in the ‘ground-level’ practicing of supranational law, this study examines how sub-national bureaucrats may find themselves in situations where they balance contending preferences and concerns of multiple, and competing, principals. Benefiting from original survey data gathered in Norwegian and Swedish municipalities, we assess how the notion of ‘multi-hatted’ bureaucratic agents noted in the multilevel union administration literature can be transferred to the subnational level and provide insights into how sub-national bureaucrats relate to multiple principals and how policy conflicts are resolved in the ‘ground level’ implementation of supranational law.

• Trondal, Jarle (2024). Organization theory, public administration, and the study of multilevel executive order. In Brandsma, Gijs Jan (Eds.), Handbook on European Union Public Administration. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781802209006. p. 45–63. Full text in Research Archive
• Kühn, Nadja Sophia Bekkelund & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Caught in the Balance: Consequences of Associated Membership over Time. In Fromage, Diane (Eds.), Redefining EU Membership: Differentiation In and Outside the European Union. Oxford University Press. ISSN 9780191948145. p. 185–209. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2024). The Multilevel Administrative State and the Future of Public Administration Research. International Journal of Public Administration. ISSN 0190-0692. p. 1–13. doi: 10.1080/01900692.2024.2412273. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The administrative state, originally coined by Dwight Waldo, emphasizes the distinct role of public administration in democratic governance. Yet, public administration research has insufficiently theorized how administrative structures at one level of government may be consequential for public governance at another level. This study theorizes how the administrative state has transcended its mere domestic role in democracy, and suggests how future research should study multilevel administrative systems. Departing from the invitation and lessons of Waldo, the article theorizes how ways of organizing the administrative state at one level of government bias public governance across levels of authority.

• Trondal, Jarle (2024). Organization theory and the study of international bureaucracy: A comparative analysis. In Reinalda, Bob & Louis, Merieke (Ed.), Routledge Handbook of International Organization. Routledge. ISSN 9781032540696. Full text in Research Archive
• Fossum, John Erik; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud; Olsen, Espen D. H. & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Innenfor, men utenfor. Handlingsrommets muligheter og begrensninger i EU-politikken. Nytt Norsk Tidsskrift (NNT). ISSN 0800-336X. 41(2), p. 104–118. doi: 10.18261/nnt.41.2.2. Full text in Research Archive
• Verhoest, Koen; Latusek, Dominika; Six, Frederique; Maman, Libby; Papadopoulos, Yannis & Schomaker, Rachel [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2024). Trust and distrust in public governance settings: Conceptualising and testing the link in regulatory relations. Journal of Trust Research. ISSN 2151-5581. 14(2), p. 127–156. doi: 10.1080/21515581.2024.2383918. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The relationship between trust and distrust in public governance is still an open question. In the literature, three different perspectives on how trust and distrust are related are intensively debated: (1) trust and distrust as two ends of the same conceptual continuum; (2) trust and distrust as opposites, but with neutral ground in between; and (3) trust and distrust as related, yet distinct concepts. Employing a new measure for distrust and by using perceptual data on trust and distrust in regulatory agencies from multiple types of stakeholders in nine countries and three sectors, this article shows that high trust and high distrust can co-exist at the same time, and that trust and distrust are negatively correlated only to a limited extent. Moreover, while trustworthiness correlates strongly with trust, trustworthiness does not or only weakly correlate with distrust in a negative way. These findings are robust even when controlling for respondents' characteristics, different types of stakeholders, sectors and countries. This suggests that in public governance settings trust and distrust should be considered as distinct concepts, and the article calls for more research into the distinctiveness of the measurement, causes and effects of distrust, compared to trust.

• Geys, Benny; Lægreid, Per; Murdoch, Zuzana & Trondal, Jarle (2023). Organizational Stability and Resocialization in Public Administrations: Theory and Evidence from Norwegian Civil Servants (1986-2016). Public Administration. ISSN 0033-3298. 102(3), p. 1137–1155. doi: 10.1111/padm.12968. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The organizational theory approach to public administration emphasizes that organizational features of public bureaucracies shape civil servants' role perceptions and opinions. This study brings forward a novel refinement of this theoretical framework by arguing that such processes of organizational resocialization require intertemporal consistency of the organizational environment. We empirically test this proposition by combining individual-level longitudinal data from a panel of Norwegian civil servants (1986–2016; N ≈ 375) with information about organizational changes in ministerial structures since 1945. Using individuals' task portfolio as our main organizational “influencer” of interest, we confirm that the impact of individuals' task portfolio on their role perceptions only strengthens over time for individuals working in ministries with a high level of organizational stability. This finding adds an important scope condition—namely, intertemporal stability—to the traditional organizational theory argument about what shapes civil servants' role perceptions and opinions.

• Trondal, Jarle; Svendsen, Øyvind; Saltnes, Johanne Døhlie; Olsen, Espen Daniel Hagen; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Farsund, Arild Aurvåg [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2023). Flexible Association in Foreign, Security, and Defence Policy: A case of gradually diminishing autonomy? Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISSN 9781003246961. Full text in Research Archive
• Riddervold, Marianne; Fossum, John Erik; Lord, Christopher James; Farstad, Fay Madeleine; Farsund, Arild Aurvåg & Leiren, Merethe Dotterud [Show all 10 contributors for this article] (2023). Autonomy and Wriggle Room, Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISSN 9781003246961. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle; Svendsen, Øyvind; Saltnes, Johanne Døhlie; Olsen, Espen Daniel Hagen; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Farsund, Arild Aurvåg [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2023). Not Much Wriggle Room: Brexit and the Norway model, Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISSN 9781003246961. Full text in Research Archive
• Pinheiro, Romulo; Gänzle, Stefan; Klenk, Tanja & Trondal, Jarle (2023). Unpacking strategic alliances in European higher education. Tertiary Education and Management. ISSN 1358-3883. 29(3), p. 213–228. doi: 10.1007/s11233-024-09133-6. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  As the world becomes more complex and interconnected, organizations embedded in dynamic, competitive, and highly institutionalized fields devise mechanisms to reduce uncertainty and enhance competitiveness by joining forces with other players, thereby increasing both their salience, legitimacy and resilience. One such mechanism pertains to strategic alliances (SAs), broadly defined as inter-organisational, long-term cooperative arrangements aimed at achieving a desired future state that is beneficial for all partners involved (Elmuti et al., 2005) and/or encompassing tactical activities for safeguarding gains that have already been realized (Newman & Chaharbaghi, 1996). The topic has, for some time, been widely covered in the strategic management literature, largely in the context of efforts to sustain competitive market advantages (Porter, 1989). SAs provide a multiplicity of benefits to organisations. These include but are not limited to; gaining access to new markets, exchange of knowledge and technologies, sharing the risk of financial investments, pool and combine resources, provide new venues for learning, support institutional legitimacy, and defending the interests of incumbent players (Angwin & Sammut-Bonnici, 2014; Mamédio et al., 2019). Despite these advantages, the literature suggests that SAs are less appealing to organisations possessing proprietary technologies, enjoying strategic cost advantages as well as those with a dominant field position in terms of market share (Angwin & Sammut-Bonnici, 2014). Hence, SAs “can serve as a type of strategic choice or alternative that can enable companies [and other types of organisations] to cope with unstable, global and competitive environments permeated by new threats and opportunities” (Mamédio et al., 2019, p. 83). This extended editorial first offers a review of the rise of SAs within management and organizational studies, followed by a review of literature of these alliances in the public sector and in higher education (HE). The final part of the paper outlines this special issue in brief by reviewing the contours of each contribution.

• Jacobsen, Dag Ingvar & Trondal, Jarle (2023). Institutional geography: effects of physical distance on agency autonomy. International Review of Administrative Sciences. ISSN 0020-8523. doi: 10.1177/00208523231164072. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Establishing government agencies outside ministerial departments is frequently justified by a need to safeguard agency autonomy. In addition to ‘formal agencification’, that is, erecting formal barriers between agencies and ministries, agencies are also frequently (re)located physically distant from ministries to both signal and strengthen agency autonomy. However, we know little of the effects of physical location and distance on agency autonomy. Using two large surveys from 2006 and 2016, this study examines how geographical location and distance affect agency autonomy. Our study establishes that agency autonomy is only weakly associated with physical location and distance, and is much less important than political salience. Whereas a conventional claim is that agency autonomy may be strengthened by physically (re)locating agencies at arm's length distance from the core executive, our study suggests that physical (re)location represents an ineffective administrative policy design-tool when applied to agency autonomy.

• Trondal, Jarle; Svendsen, Øyvind; Saltnes, Johanne Døhlie; Olsen, Espen Daniel Hagen; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Farsund, Arild Aurvåg [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2023). Global Trade and Development: The challenge of translating legal wriggle room into autonomy, Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISSN 9781003246961. Full text in Research Archive
• Fossum, John Erik; Lord, Christopher James; Farstad, Fay Madeleine; Farsund, Arild Aurvåg; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Olsen, Espen Daniel Hagen [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2023). Autonomy Under Complex Interdependence: The case of Norway and lessons for Brexit? Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISSN 9781003246961. Full text in Research Archive
• Kühn, Nadja Sophia Bekkelund & Trondal, Jarle (2023). Access, capacity and influence. Comparative European Politics. ISSN 1472-4790. 22(4), p. 409–432. doi: 10.1057/s41295-023-00366-0. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Different forms of integration into the European Union (EU) call for studies of the consequences of multilevel access structures. Similar to EU member-states, government officials from associated states interact closely with EU-level administrative institutions, notably the European Commission (Commission) and EU agencies. Benefiting from a large-N survey, this study demonstrates that bureaucrats from “third-countries”, such as Norway, may exert sectoral policy influence in the EU, and that organizational features of the public administration may systematically shape such patterns. The study offers two distinct contributions to the extant literature: First, it presents original survey data on how domestic agency officials perceive their influence vis-à-vis the EUs executive branch. Secondly, it probes the effects of two distinct drivers of policy influence—bureaucrats’ access to secondary structures and requisite administrative capacities.

• Trondal, Jarle & Haslerud, Gjermund (2023). Bureaucratic bias in integrated administrative systems: A large-scale study of government officials. Governance. An International Journal of Policy, Administration and Institutions. ISSN 0952-1895. 37(2), p. 475–495. doi: 10.1111/gove.12780. Full text in Research Archive
• Geys, Benny; Lægreid, Per; Murdoch, Zuzana & Trondal, Jarle (2023). The impact of terrorism on civil servants: Longitudinal evidence from the July 22, 2011 attack in Norway. Public Administration Review. ISSN 0033-3352. 83(6), p. 1772–1784. doi: 10.1111/puar.13694. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Building on a growing literature assessing the societal impact of terrorism, this article analyzes whether and how a terror attack targeting public institutions affects civil servants in their day-to-day work. This is an important question to enhance our understanding of how terrorism can (or cannot) affect the operation of core government functions. Theoretically, the study contributes to a broader account of the political consequences of terrorism by combining insights from social identity and organization theory. Empirically, we exploit a two-wave survey fielded before and after the 2011 terror attack in Norway, which allows us to study the same civil servants (N = 186) before and after this event. While terrorists wish to disrupt public institutions, our findings indicate that a terror attack targeting core government institutions strengthens internal cohesion and increases attention to political signals in work tasks. We discuss implications of these effects for the functioning of democratic government.

• Marcussen, Martin & Trondal, Jarle (2023). The OECD as an international bureaucracy. In Francesco, Fabricio & Claudio, Radaelli (Ed.), The Elgar Companion to the OECD. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800886865. p. 81–95. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2022). “Let's organize”: The organizational basis for stable public governance. Public Administration. ISSN 0033-3298. special issue. doi: 10.1111/padm.12858. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This study carries two distinct contributions to extant litera-ture. Theoretically, it introduces an organizational approachto the study of public governance. Empirically, it demon-strates how the organizational architecture of governmentrepresents a stable and systemic capacity for public gover-nance across time. The study establishes how stabilityserves as an enduring feature of public governance andhow this is anchored in theorganizational architectureofgovernment systems. Moreover, structured flexibility isillustrated by how the civil service adapts to both interna-tional organizations and societal stakeholders. Theorizingthe organizational dimension of public governance, thisstudy also introduces adesign toolthat may be useful for delib-erately (re)structuring public governance. Empirically, thesearguments are probed by a sizable dataset with 13,173 obser-vations across 40 years, consisting of nine surveys of civilservants at ministry and agency levels. The data enables along-term perspective on government civil servants overnearly half a century, thus allowing for a comprehensive studyof the organizational basis for public governance.

• Riddervold, Marianne; Newsome, Akasemi & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Epilogue: polycrisis and resilience in the European Union: Covid-19 and avenues for future studies. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. p. 722–734. doi: 10.4324/9780429054136-49. Full text in Research Archive
• Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Conclusion. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Birkeland, Terese & Trondal, Jarle (2022). The rift between executive contraction and executive detraction: the case of European Commission battery policy-making. Journal of European Public Policy. ISSN 1350-1763. p. 1–23. doi: 10.1080/13501763.2022.2118356. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Providing policy solutions to solve across border societal challenges in Europe, such as electrifying the transport sector by facilitating a European battery industry, call for increased coordination among policy-makers. This article offers a novel study of the formulation of the European Commission’s (Commission’s) battery regulation proposal. In doing so, the paper makes two distinct contributions to extant literature: Theoretically, it outlines two conceptual models of executive governance – that of the Commission as a contracted and a detracted institution – and offers an institutional-organizational approach to account for conditions under which each of these models is likely to unfold. Empirically, the paper offers a case study of the process of drafting the Commission’s battery regulation proposal. Benefiting from semi-structured interviews, the study reveals patterns of executive contraction and detraction in the Commission. Whereas extant literature picture the Commission as an increasingly centralized and contracted executive institution, this study finds that executive contraction and detraction tend to co-evolve and co-exist.

• Gänzle, Stefan; Leruth, Benjamin & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Introduction to Part 3. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Introduction to Part 4. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Gänzle, Stefan; Trondal, Jarle & Leruth, Benjamin (2022). Introduction to Part 5. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Leruth, Benjamin & Trondal, Jarle (2022). The Nordic countries as pioneers of differentiation. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Introduction: differentiation in the European Union as a field of study. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle; Leruth, Benjamin & Gänzle, Stefan (2022). Introduction to Part 1. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle; Gänzle, Stefan & Leruth, Benjamin (2022). Introduction to Part 2. In Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISSN 9780367149659. Full text in Research Archive
• Tieku, Thomas Kwasi; Trondal, Jarle & Gänzle, Stefan (2022). The behavioural logics of international public servants: the case of African Union Commission staff. Cambridge Review of International Affairs. ISSN 0955-7571. doi: 10.1080/09557571.2022.2126746. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Although international organisations (IOs) are created by governments, their international public administrations (IPAs) have succeeded in ring-fencing their resources, and policymaking from direct intervention by member states. Research shows that international civil servants are best able to protect their autonomy when embedded in large and well-resourced IPAs. Staff in large IOs use their huge size, bureaucratic complexities, and different behavioural logics to protect their autonomy and thereby leave a ‘bureaucratic footprint’ in international affairs. Whereas the behavioural logics of large IPAs, mostly headquartered in the Global North, are reasonably welldocumented, not much has been written on behavioural logics of international civil servants embedded in small secretariats. We seek to address the gap using the African Union Commission (AUC) staff. Drawing insights from organisational theory and mixed research methods, including the first ever comprehensive survey of AUC staff, the study finds that the AUC staff primarily evoke a departmental behavioural logic. In the absence of departmental logics, the preference of AUC staff is to take on supranational, transnational, and lastly intergovernmental persona. The reluctance of AUC staff to evoke intergovernmental logic is surprising given that the AUC is embedded in an intergovernmental governance architecture.

• Trondal, Jarle (2022). An organisational approach to meta-governance: structuring reforms through organisational (re-)engineering. Policy & Politics. ISSN 0305-5736. 50(2), p. 139–159. doi: 10.1332/030557321x16336164441825. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This article outlines an organisation theory approach to meta-governance by illustrating how public organisations may organise policy change and reform by (re-)designing organisational choice-architectures. First, it outlines an organisational approach to meta-governance and, second, it offers an illustrative case of meta-governance by examining how public innovation processes are shaped by organisational designs. Two arguments are proposed: (i) first, that public meta-governance is an accessible tool for facilitating policy change, and (ii) second, that meta-governance may be systematically biased by organisational structuring. Examining conditions for meta-governance is important since governments experience frequent criticism of existing inefficient organisational arrangements and calls for major reforms of the state. The contribution of this article is to suggest how an organisational approach to meta-governance might both explain meta-governance and make it practically relevant for solving societal challenges in the future.

• Biévre, Dirk De; Bursens, Peter; Lord, Christopher James; Trondal, Jarle & Wessel, Ramses A. (2022). Concluding Reflections: (Re)Legitimation by Institutional Design. In Lord, Christopher James; Bursens, Peter; Biévre, Dirk De; Trondal, Jarle & Wessel, Ramses A. (Ed.), The Politics of Legitimation in the European Union. Legitimacy Recovered?. Routledge. ISSN 9781032101408. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2022). Flernivåstaten og krisehåndtering: En kommentar. Nordisk Administrativt Tidsskrift. ISSN 0029-1285. 99(2). doi: 10.7577/nat.4968. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Artikkelen diskuterer muligheter og utfordringer knyttet til koordinering på tvers av styringsnivåer. Utfordringen er minst tredelt: Dels knyttet til balansen mellom kontinuitet og endring, nærmere bestemt evnen offentlig forvaltning har til å balansere en stabil kjerne samtidig som den justerer, oppdaterer og reformerer; dels balansen mellom effektivitet og legitimitet, nærmere bestemt evnen til kortsiktig problemløsningen i møtet med kriser og langsiktige utfordringer knyttet til legitime løsninger generelt og parlamentarisk forankring konkret; dels dilemmaet mellom politisk-administrativ orden i turbulente tider, nærmere bestemt hvordan offentlige institusjoner håndterer kriser og vanskelige problemer når sammenhengene mellom problem og løsning er vanskelige å forstå og krevende å kontrollere. Artikkelen diskuterer disse dilemmaene i det som fremstilles som en europeisk administrativ flernivåstat

• Keast, Robyn; Flynn, Christine; Noble, David; Trondal, Jarle & Pinheiro, Romulo (2022). Towards a research and policy agenda for governing complexity. In Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (Ed.), Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800889644. p. 261–277. doi: 10.4337/9781800889651.00027. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This volume set out to examine public governance under growing complexity and turbulence, and the increased need for change and adaptability to emerging circumstances such as outlined above. This concluding chapter summarizes and considers the four themes of design, agency, power, and resilience that organizes the volume. This chapter also combine research findings with insights from a practitioner webinar that was organized by the editors. Looking forward, the chapter closes with discussing next practice approaches, that are future oriented, emergent and based on experimentation, discovery, multi-level networks and co-creation are called for. It is argued that such models better cope with continuous disruptions and opportunities.

• Trondal, Jarle; Pinheiro, Romulo; Keast, Robyn & Noble, David (2022). Governing complexity in times of turbulence. In Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (Ed.), Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800889644. p. 2–12. doi: 10.4337/9781800889651.00010. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle; Tieku, Thomas & Gänzle, Stefan (2022). The organisational dimension of executive authority in the Global South: Insights from the AU and ECOWAS commissions. Global Policy. ISSN 1758-5880. doi: 10.1111/1758-5899.13157. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The growing importance of executive authority at the international level has fuelled scholarly debate about the level of autonomy enjoyed by international public administration (IPA), that is, the executive arms of international organisations. Insights from IPAs in the West or Global North, such as the European Union, have largely shaped these debates, whereas data from IPAs in the Global South are largely missing in the discussion. This article seeks to remedy this imbalance and contribute to an organisational-theory-inspired conceptualisation of IPA autonomy: We draw insights from survey data from the commissions of the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). We demonstrate that, although both commissions are embedded in inter-governmental organisations, they demonstrate remarkably strong features of actor-level autonomy. Thus, this study suggests that even IPAs constrained by an inter-governmental environment may still wield some degree of autonomy. Finally, the article draws practical implications for reforming IPAs.

• Trondal, Jarle; Pinheiro, Romulo; Keast, Robyn & Noble, David (2022). Complexity, resilience and public governance in times of turbulence. In Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (Ed.), Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800889644. p. 13–31. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter outlines the analytical elements that organizes the volume. This chapter aims to understand how public organizations facing turbulence and complexity solve public problems in the short term whilst fostering the institutionalization of problem-solving in the long run through a variety of institutional arrangements. One potential organizational choice includes the reliance on pre-existing organizational designs. However, if such structures are either absent or deemed poor, an alternative is to design new platforms for collaborative governance that are distinguished from existing governmental structures by emphasizing the inclusion of various actors across the public and private sectors as well as civil society. This chapter introduces a set of theoretical ideas that guides the volume. In short, the chapter outlines the concept of complexity and the governing of complexity in contemporary societies. The subsequent section presents turbulence and outline varieties of turbulence and consequences for public governance. The final section discusses how public organizations may embrace turbulence by fostering resilience.

• Trondal, Jarle (2022). Policy innovation and organizational design: connecting theory and practice. In Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (Ed.), Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800889644. p. 80–101. Full text in Research Archive
• Malmborg, Frans August Runo af & Trondal, Jarle (2022). Transformative ideas, sturdy organizations: varieties of artificial intelligence policy in the Nordics. In Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (Ed.), Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781800889644. p. 33–53. Full text in Research Archive
• Bach, Tobias; Trondal, Jarle; Aars, Jacob; Lindén, Tord Skogedal; Martinussen, Pål Erling & Winsvold, Marte Slagsvold (2022). Hvorfor trenger vi en ny infrastruktur for norsk forvaltningsforskning? Norsk statsvitenskapelig tidsskrift. ISSN 0801-1745. 38(4), p. 137–157. doi: 10.18261/nst.38.4.2. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Artikkelen presenterer etableringen, organiseringen og gjennomføring av ny forskningsinfrastruktur for norsk forvaltningsforskning. Norsk Forvaltningspanel (NFP) er en forskningsinfrastruktur etablert for å gjennomføre jevnlige spørreundersøkelser blant forvaltningsansatte i staten (departementer, direktorater og tilsyn). NFP er en del av en større forskningsinfrastruktur som både muliggjør panelundersøkelser blant byråkrater over tid og koordinert datainnsamling mellom byråkrater, politikere, journalister og medborgere. Artikkelen skisserer bakgrunnen for etableringen av NFP, noen grunnprinsipper for organisering av infrastrukturen, samt en gjennomgang av fordeler og utfordringer ved etableringen av en slik infrastruktur. Deretter analyserer vi panelets representativitet og presenterer utvalgte resultater fra første runde med datainnsamling i NFP, som vi sammenligner med eksisterende survey-data. Avslutningsvis diskuterer vi kritiske steg i videreutviklingen av forskningsinfrastrukturen.

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• Tømte, Cathrine Edelhard; Trondal, Jarle & Ruser, Alexander (2026). Digital Transformations. Social and Ethical Consequnces of Rapid Technological Change. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781035361212. 286 p. doi: 10.4337/9781035361229. Full text in Research Archive
• Bátora, Jozef; Fossum, John Erik & Trondal, Jarle (2026). A Theory of Segmented Political Order. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781009589345. 100 p. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This Element introduces the theory of segmented polity to address the misfit between dominant state-centric political theories and the hybrid realities of contemporary governance. Segmented polities are contested, partial, and constrained but nonetheless develop autonomous policymaking capacities and distinct social constituencies. The EU exemplifies this form, blending supranational and intergovernmental traits within a statist political order. Grounded in organization theory and institutionalism, the Element provides empirical analysis of the internal market and security segments showing how segmented polities operate across functional domains and generate bounded epistemic communities. While enabling policy efficiency, they also exhibit democratic deficits. The Element presents segmented polities as evolutionary responses to governance complexity and outlines implications for political science, international relations, European integration theory, and democracy studies, and proposes a research agenda focused on longitudinal, actor-based, and comparative studies of polity segmentation beyond the EU.

• Trondal, Jarle (2026). Research Handbook on International Bureaucracies. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781035310241. 554 p. doi: 10.4337/9781035310258. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This authoritative Research Handbook provides detailed insights into international bureaucracies, examining their diverse roles, powers and resources, as well as their implications for both national and international politics and policies. It acknowledges the crucial role of public administration in maintaining robust political systems, with a view to answering the question: to what extent and under what conditions may such administrative bodies exert influence on politics and policies?

• Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Robust Public Governance in a Turbulent Era. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781803928791. 187 p. doi: 10.4337/9781803928807. Full text in Research Archive
• Fossum, John Erik & Trondal, Jarle (2025). Hvilket Norge i hvilket Europa? Cappelen Damm Akademisk. ISBN 9788202884833. doi: 10.23865/cdf.260. Full text in Research Archive
• Ansell, Christopher; Sørensen, Eva; Torfing, Jacob & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Robust Governance in Turbulent Times. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781009433006. 108 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Fossum, John Erik; Lord, Christopher James; Farstad, Fay Madeleine; Farsund, Arild Aurvåg; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Olsen, Espen D. H. [Show all 10 contributors for this article] (2023). Norway’s EU Experience and Lessons for the UK: On Autonomy and Wriggle Room. Routledge. ISBN 9781003246961. 246 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Riddervold, Marianne & Trondal, Jarle (2023). Å studere EU. Fagbokforlaget. ISBN 9788245038156. 232 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2023). Governing the Contemporary Administrative State Studies on the Organizational Dimension of Politics. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9783031280085. 483 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Leruth, Benjamin; Gänzle, Stefan & Trondal, Jarle (2022). The Routledge Handbook of Differentiation in the European Union. Routledge. ISBN 9780367149659. 750 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Lord, Christopher James; Bursens, Peter; Biévre, Dirk De; Trondal, Jarle & Wessel, Ramses A. (2022). The Politics of Legitimation in the European Union. Legitimacy Recovered? Routledge. ISBN 9781032101408. 308 p. Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle; Keast, Robyn; Noble, David & Pinheiro, Romulo (2022). Governing Complexity in Times of Turbulence. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781800889644. 296 p. Full text in Research Archive

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• Tømte, Cathrine Edelhard; Trondal, Jarle; Ziglioli, Gloria & Ruser, Alexander (2026). Introduction to digital transformations. In Tømte, Cathrine Edelhard; Trondal, Jarle & Ruser, Alexander (Ed.), Digital Transformations. Social and Ethical Consequnces of Rapid Technological Change. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISSN 9781035361212. p. 1–15. doi: 10.4337/9781035361229.00005. Full text in Research Archive
• Rieker, Pernille; Fossum, John Erik; Trondal, Jarle; Søreide, Ine Marie Eriksen; Leiren, Merethe Dotterud & Riddervold, Marianne [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2025). Hvilket Norge i hvilket Europa? doi: https:/www.uio.no/om/aktuelt/universitetsplassen/domus-bibliotheca/arrangementer/2025/hvilket-norge-i-hvilket-europa. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Arrangementet tok utgangspunkt i boken «Hvilket Norge i hvilket Europa?» som ble utgitt av Cappelen Damm i 2025. Boken er redigert av John Erik Fossum (UiO/ARENA) og Jarle Trondal (ARENA/UiA), og med bidrag fra Arild Aurvåg Farsund (UiB), Merethe Dotterud Leiren (CICERO), Arne Melchior (NUPI), Marianne Riddervold (ARENA/NUPI), Pernille Rieker (ARENA/NUPI), Johanne Døhlie Saltnes (ARENA), og Ulf Sverdrup (BI).

• Fossum, John Erik & Trondal, Jarle (2025). EØS som en politikkens retrett. doi: https:/www.altinget.no/artikkel/eoes-som-en-politikkens-retrett. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Global tollkrig har på nytt understreket behovet for EØS som en sikker havn for Norge. Samtidig virker dagens EU-tilknytning som en sperre for en debatt om «hvilket Norge i hvilket Europa», skriver John Erik Fossum og Jarle Trondal.

• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2025). "Differentiation, Sub-National Europeanization and Patterns of Transnational Municipal Networking". Full text in Research Archive
• Fossum, John Erik; Olsen, Espen D. H. & Trondal, Jarle (2024). Innledning: Autonomi under kompleks gjensidig avhengighet. Norsk statsvitenskapelig tidsskrift. ISSN 0801-1745. 40(1), p. 1–7. doi: 10.18261/nst.40.1.1. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Den europeiske integrasjonsprosessen har omfattende implikasjoner for EUs medlemsstater og for tett tilknyttede ikke-medlemmer som Norge. EU representerer et omfattende institusjonelt system med både overnasjonale og mellomstatlige trekk (Fabbrini 2015, 2018; Bátora og Fossum 2020). I sum bidrar EU til å forskyve balansen mellom staters selvbestemmelse og medbestemmelse i Europa. Desto mer EU integrerer, desto mindre rom blir det for staters selvbestemmelse. EUs integrasjon er imidlertid ikke ensbetydende med overnasjonalitet. Mye av dynamikken i EU-samarbeidet kommer gjennom at EU koordinerer statenes politikk heller enn å overføre den til EU-nivået (Bickerton m.fl. 2015; Heidbreder 2014). EU-samarbeidet kan forstås som en dynamisk balansering mellom overnasjonal regulering og mellomstatlig koordinering av politikk. EU-samarbeidet utgjør på denne måten en distinkt form for kompleks gjensidig avhengighet (som henspiller på Keohane og Nyes (1987) klassiske begrep), der medlemsstaters grep om politikkutformingen varierer med saksfelt (mest direkte i såkalte ‘core state powers’ som forsvar og sikkerhet og fiskalpolitikk (Genschel og Jachtenfuchs 2014)).

• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2024). "Multilevel administration, sub-national bureaucracies and the local practicing of supranational law". Full text in Research Archive
• Trondal, Jarle (2024). Norway. Cleer Paper. ISSN 1878-9595. p. 21–24. Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2024). "Sub-National Europeanization, Differentiation and Patterns of Transnational Municipal Networking". Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas; Indset, Marthe & Trondal, Jarle (2024). "EU og kommuneforvaltningen". Full text in Research Archive
• Parsons, Craig Alexander; Smith, Andy; Andrejuk, Katarzyna; Trondal, Jarle & Bach, Tobias (2023). Single Markets in Services in the United States and the European Union: The Case of Construction. Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas; Indset, Marthe & Trondal, Jarle (2023). "Whose Agents? Sub-National Bureaucracies in Multilevel Administrative Spaces". Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2023). "Whose agents? Sub-national bureaucracies and the practicing of supranational law". Full text in Research Archive
• Danielsen, Ole Andreas & Trondal, Jarle (2023). "Municipalities and the practicing of supranational law: towards multi-hatted local government bureaucracies?". Full text in Research Archive
• Bach, Tobias; Trondal, Jarle & Aars, Jacob (2022). Hele livet i staten. Stat & Styring. ISSN 0803-0103. 32(1), p. 46–48. doi: 10.18261/stat.32.1.15. Full text in Research Archive
• Lord, Christopher James; Bursens, Peter; Biévre, Dirk De; Trondal, Jarle & Wessel, Ramses A. (2022). Introduction. In Lord, Christopher James; Bursens, Peter; Biévre, Dirk De; Trondal, Jarle & Wessel, Ramses A. (Ed.), The Politics of Legitimation in the European Union. Legitimacy Recovered?. Routledge. ISSN 9781032101408. Full text in Research Archive

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