@techreport{Cingolani, type = {Working Paper}, author = {Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {The State of State Capacity: a review of concepts, evidence and measures}, series = {MERIT Working Papers}, journal = {MERIT Working Papers}, edition = {\#2013-053}, abstract = {This working paper is part of the research programme on Institutions, Governance and Longterm Economic Growth, a partnership between the French Development Agency AFD and the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance Maastricht University UNUMerit. The research builds on the Institutional Profiles Database IPD, jointly developed by AFD and the French Ministry of the Economy since 2001.What is state capacity and how does it affect development The concept of state capacity acquired centrality during the late seventies and eighties, sponsored by a rather compact set of scholarly works. It later permeated through several disciplines and has now earned a place within the many governance dimensions affecting economic performance. The present article aims to provide a historical account of the evolution and usage of the state capacity concept, along with its various operationalizations. It examines in particular a the growing distance in the usage of the concept by different disciplinary and thematic fields; b the process of branching out of the concept from restricted to more multidimensional definitions; c the problems with construct validity and concept stretching, and d the generalized lack of clarity that exists regarding the institutional sources of state capacity.}, language = {en} } @incollection{AnheierCingolaniHallerbergetal., author = {Anheier, Helmut K. and Cingolani, Luciana and Hallerberg, Mark and Kaufmann, Sonja and List, Regina}, title = {Global Crise and Governance - Lessons, Implications, Recommendations}, series = {The Governance Report 2018}, booktitle = {The Governance Report 2018}, publisher = {Oxford University Press}, address = {Oxford}, isbn = {0198821492}, publisher = {Hertie School}, pages = {105 -- 118}, abstract = {The Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008-9 was the greatest economic stress test since the 1940s. It put not only financial markets and currencies at risk; entire economies and political systems were threatened as the GFC soon revealed major governance shortcomings and weaknesses felt across a wide spectrum of policy fields. Globalization seemed in jeopardy, the Washington Consensus of neoliberal policies broken, and democratic backsliding set in as populism and protectionism began to take root. The GFC triggered many responses to improve governance through reforms and regulatory measures of many kinds across a wide range of fields: most prominently in finance and banking, but also in fiscal policy, trade, labor markets and social security. Ten years after the GFC, the 2018 Governance Report takes stock and asks: How have countries fared, and are they better prepared to avoid or withstand another crisis of GFC proportions? To answer this question, the 2018 Report focuses on the performance of countries before and after the GFC. Using elaborate indicator and data systems, applying state-of-the-art analytics, and covering a wide range of countries, it offers a systematic comparison of governance performance from three perspectives: What public goods are being provided, at what quality and to what effect? How ready are countries to address governance challenges in the context of globalization? What are the administrative capacities of the public sector? With measures taken before the GFC and today, these perspectives on governance performance provide important benchmarks for measuring both resilience and progress and can assist policymakers in designing effective solutions.}, language = {en} } @article{NistotskayaCingolani, author = {Nistotskaya, Marina and Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {Bureaucratic Structure, Regulatory Quality, and Entrepreneurship in a Comparative Perspective: Cross-Sectional and Panel Data Evidence}, series = {Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory}, volume = {26}, journal = {Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory}, number = {3}, doi = {10.1093/jopart/muv026}, pages = {519 -- 534}, abstract = {The article examines the effect of meritocratic recruitment and tenure protection in public bureaucracies on regulatory quality and business entry rates in a global sample. Utilizing a cross-country measure on the extent of meritocratic entry to bureaucracy and a time-series indicator of tenure protection, it subjects theoretical claims that these features improve the epistemic qualities of bureaucracies and also serve as a credible commitment device to empirical test. We find that, conditional on a number of economic, political, and legal factors, countries where bureaucracies are more insulated from day-to-day oversight by individual politicians through the institutional features under consideration tend to have both better regulation, specifically business regulation, and higher rates of business entry. Our findings suggest that bureaucratic structure has an indirect effect on entrepreneurship rates through better regulatory quality, but also exert a direct independent effect.}, language = {en} } @article{CingolaniThomssondeCrombrugghe, author = {Cingolani, Luciana and Thomsson, Kaj and de Crombrugghe, Denis}, title = {Minding Weber more than ever? The impacts of State Capacity and Bureaucratic Autonomy on development goals}, series = {World Development}, volume = {72}, journal = {World Development}, doi = {10.1016/j.worlddev.2015.02.016}, pages = {191 -- 207}, abstract = {State capacity has attracted renewed interest over the last years, notably in the study of violent conflict. Yet, this concept is conceived differently depending on where the interest lies. In this article, we focus on bureaucratic autonomy as a distinct concept and discuss its connection to state capacity in detail. Using panel data over 1990-2010 and a novel indicator of autonomy, we estimate the separate effect of state capacity and bureaucratic autonomy on child mortality and tuberculosis prevalence. The evidence suggests that bureaucratic autonomy has a stronger impact than commonly used measures of state capacity or traditional macroeconomic variables.}, language = {en} } @incollection{FazekasCingolaniToth, author = {Fazekas, Mih{\´a}ly and Cingolani, Luciana and T{\´o}th, Bence}, title = {Innovations in objectively measuring corruption in public procurement}, series = {Governance Indicators: Approaches, Progress, Promise}, booktitle = {Governance Indicators: Approaches, Progress, Promise}, editor = {Anheier, Helmut K. and Haber, Matthias and Kayser, Mark A.}, publisher = {Oxford University Press}, address = {Oxford}, isbn = {9780198817062}, publisher = {Hertie School}, pages = {154 -- 185}, language = {en} } @incollection{Cingolani, author = {Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {A Decade Long Grievance? The Global and Financial Economic Crisis' Impact on Institutional Trust}, series = {The Governance Report 2018}, booktitle = {The Governance Report 2018}, publisher = {Oxford University Press}, address = {Oxford}, issn = {9780198821496}, publisher = {Hertie School}, pages = {65 -- 85}, language = {en} } @article{FazekasCingolani, author = {Fazekas, Mih{\´a}ly and Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {Breaking the Cycle? How (Not) to Use Political Finance Regulations to Counter Public Procurement Corruption}, series = {The Slavonic and East European Review}, volume = {95}, journal = {The Slavonic and East European Review}, number = {1}, doi = {10.5699/slaveasteurorev2.95.1.0076}, pages = {76 -- 116}, abstract = {There are widespread perceptions and countless documented cases of tight-knit networks of politicians and businessmen colluding in the allocation of public procurement contracts in return for political party donations. In the absence of systematic evidence, neither the magnitude of the problem nor the effectiveness of policies curbing such corruption is well-understood. In order to advance our understanding of these phenomena, this paper tests whether political financing regulations can contribute to controlling corruption in public procurement. We utilize aggregated official micro-level data on almost 3 million contracts awarded across twenty-nine European countries from 2009 to 2014 to measure the risk of high-level institutionalized corruption using novel proxy indicators. Legislation regulating political finances is directly measured by coding national laws from 2009 to 2014. In cross-country panel regression and difference-in-difference models, we find that introducing additional political financing restrictions does not have a measurable negative impact on public procurement corruption risks. In fact, the observed effect is positive in most models. The observed relationship remains the same for most constitutive components of political financing regulations. Several challenges remain for a conclusive judgement on political party financing regulations' effectiveness in curbing corruption, such as measuring implementation rather than legislation, allowing for a longer lead-time for regulatory impact, or considering institutional inter-dependencies.}, language = {en} } @article{Cingolani, author = {Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {The role of state capacity in development studies}, series = {Journal of Development Perspectives}, volume = {2}, journal = {Journal of Development Perspectives}, number = {1-2}, doi = {10.5325/jdevepers.2.1-2.0088}, pages = {88 -- 114}, abstract = {The role that state capacity plays in development has been the subject of growing cross-disciplinary research. The state capacity concept has faced criticism on numerous fronts, with scholars recently devoting serious efforts to overcome it. This article offers a rich overview of the concepts' journey in terms of its theoretical roots, its uses by different disciplines, its definitions and measurements, and the empirical evidence around the impact of state capacity on development outcomes. It argues in favor of an optimistic view of the field's advances by showing: (a) convergence in conceptualizations and (b) high-quality innovations in measurements. The article also contributes to the field by offering a definition of state capacity that consolidates all elements of the dominant strand and further tackles a number of issues that remain weak and should take priority in a future agenda.}, language = {en} } @article{Cingolani, author = {Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {The survival of open government platforms: Empirical insights from a global sample}, series = {Government Information Quarterly}, volume = {Volume 38}, journal = {Government Information Quarterly}, editor = {Elsevier,}, edition = {Issue 1}, publisher = {Elsevier}, doi = {10.1016/j.giq.2020.101522}, abstract = {For a number of years scholars have theorized about a change of paradigm in the collaborative practices between governments and citizens as a result of the newly emerged many-to-many forms of connectivity. A vibrant agenda on open government has flourished since, with critical advances on the conceptual front, but much less empirical testing of its propositions. This article makes use of a recognized typology of co-production initiatives in order to implement a Cox hazards survival analysis of 465 open government platforms from a global sample in 87 countries. Its main findings suggest that government-initiated collaborations have the lowest risk of termination and that citizen-to-government initiatives the highest. They also show that while internationally-exerted pressure for openness favors the genesis of open government platforms, it does not affect their survival chances.}, language = {en} } @article{Cingolani, author = {Cingolani, Luciana}, title = {Infrastructural state capacity in the digital age: What drives the performance of COVID-19 tracing apps?}, series = {Governance}, journal = {Governance}, doi = {10.1111/gove.12666}, pages = {1 -- 23}, abstract = {In a context where states increasingly complement their physical presence with digital means, the classic idea of infrastructural state power needs reconsideration. The COVID-19 pandemic represents an unparalleled opportunity to that end, given the uniformity of one type of digital infrastructural intervention - the offer of contact tracing apps - and its highly varying performance across geographies. Against this backdrop, the article seeks to expand traditional discussions on state infrastructural power by testing a series of propositions on the explanatory factors behind tracing apps' emergence and adoption rates. The findings stemming from a pool of 150 countries show no straightforward connection between traditional and digital forms of infrastructural power. They also point at the primacy of governmental trust over financial, institutional, and technological factors - including privacy standards - when explaining high adoption, suggesting that the relational aspect of infrastructural power acquires a proportionally greater weight in the digital era.}, language = {en} }