Pluralising the economic knowledge of politics. Evidence from a German case study
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Economic expertise in German policymaking has long been shaped by technocratic, market-liberal advisory bodies closely connected to mainstream economics. Over the past decade, however, an alternative knowledge ecosystem - the New Economy Space (NES) - has emerged, promoting heterodox, pluralist, and impact-orientated approaches to economic policy. Drawing on interviews and organisational documents, this paper maps the internal diversity of the NES and compares it with established advisory configurations. We identify three distinct modes of economic knowledge and political interventions : technical and modeldriven expertise within institutionalised advisory bodies, paradigm-driven interventions by neoliberal think tanks, and pragmatic, co-creative, and problem-focused approaches within the NES. While institutionalised actors continue to hold greater resources and formal authority, the NES introduces new topics, actor constellations, and practices into economic policy debates.
Source: New Political Economy
Authors: Lukas Bäuerle, Rouven Reinke
Institutions: Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Universität Hamburg
Language: English
Topic: Policy Transfer and Learning
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Funder: Austrian Science Fund
Award: G901620645
OpenAlex ID: W7166272944
FWCI:
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