UNDERSTANDING RIPPLE EFFECTS - THE CROSS-NATIONAL ADOPTION OF POLICY INSTRUMENTS FOR BUREAUCRATIC ACCOUNTABILITY

This article examines different explanations for the cross-national di ffusion of three recent innovations in bureaucratic accountability-the institution of the ombudsman, freedom of information legislation and data protection (information privacy) law. The first two explanations a-re based on the assumption that these innovations are by-products of modernization, either the growth of the state or democratization. The third assumes that policy is shaped through processes of internationa l communication A combination of methodologies is employed to conclude that while the growth of government and liberal democratic values are necessary conditions for the adoption of all three policy instruments , they are not sufficient conditions. The pattern of adoption observed is best explained by examining how evidence about these respective po licies flows from adopting states to non-adopters. In the case of the ombudsman, this process can be characterized as one of lesson-drawing; for freedom of information, evidence is used for legitimation purpose s; for data protection, the diffusion is attributable to harmonization through international organizations. Policy transfer is hence a multi -faceted concept that embraces a number of distinct processes of trans national learning and communication.