The rise of technocratic cabinets: What we know, and what we should like to know

Abstract

The article looks into the issue of technocratic cabinets, an increasingly common phenomenon exemplified by recent cases of technocratic governments being established in several European countries. Despite the growing prevalence of such cabinets, there is a lack of literature on the given issue. Scholars have addressed technocratic cabinets mostly through single-case studies that confined themselves to analysing technocratic cabinets in individual countries; there are almost no comparative studies. This fact leaves a number of pending questions open to further research. The article reviews major findings from studies on technocratic cabinets conducted to date, critically assesses and improves some of the concepts and presents key questions yet to be addressed in the researching of technocratic governments across Europe.