Multilevel governance and intersectorality: institutional arrangements and social policies

How do multilevel or intersectoral institutional arrangements explain variations in social policies, and what is their explanatory power? Given the inequalities in the distribution of social protection—both among developing states and societies and within individual states—what is the importance of institutional coordination mechanisms for achieving sustainable development goals across various social sectors? This panel aims to bring together studies that examine social protection from these diverse angles, focusing on multilevel or intersectoral governance and the varying institutional designs of social policies. Governance plays a central role in both unitary and federal states, as a lack of governance capacity diminishes the ability to formulate and implement policies—and to enforce rules throughout the policy process—thereby directly impacting service delivery. The panel welcomes papers employing a wide range of methodological approaches—from case studies, comparative analysis, and sociometric network analysis to quantitative research—that aim to contribute to the debate on social policy.