Policy diffusion and translation: The case of evidence-based health agencies in Europe

Abstract

After a discussion of the concepts of policy diffusion, policy transfer and policy convergence, we put forward the analytical potential of the translation framework combining three dimensions: the discursive dimension, the actor's dimension and the institutional dimension. With the case of the shaping of evidence-based bureaucracies using quality evaluation and cost benefit analysis in three western European healthcare systems (uk, France and Germany), we give an example of how this framework can be operationalized and explain why it enables to understand divergent convergence processes.