Narratives and Policy Design: The Case of Border Management and Migration Control in Italy

This paper explores the benefits of incorporating the analysis of narratives in a policy design perspective. The role of narratives is strictly intertwined with the role of knowledge and expertise in shaping the policy making process. Narratives and discursive practices are indeed crucial in the dissemination and articulation of certain ideas that specify how to solve specific policy issues. In order to be successful, narratives have to be persuasive, namely, they need to be understandable, compelling and propose plausible solutions (Boswell, Geddes, and Scholten 2011). However, ideas are not only about how to solve a specific issue, but are also about the definition of the issue itself. Narratives play an important role in the process of issue interpretation as well. Though the literature on policy design recognizes the importance of knowledge-driven capacities in designing public policy, policy designs are often based on anecdotal logics (Capano and Howlett 2019). The field of migration is particularly crucial to narrative analysis, in that the development of migration policies often builds upon narratives that are not always grounded in evidence about cause-and-effect relationships. The theoretical discussion of this paper is supported by the empirical analysis of the evolution of narratives relating to border management in Italy between 2011 and 2018, and how they have been used in policy (re)design. The analysis focuses on the externalization of border controls implemented through intergovernmental agreements signed with North African countries. In particular, we explore the extent to which narratives about the need to establish cooperation with – and provide assistance to – North African countries have been giving rise to evidence-based polices. References: Boswell, Christina, Andrew Geddes, and Peter Scholten. 2011. “The Role of Narratives in Migration Policy-Making: A Research Framework.” British Journal of Politics and International Relations 13: 1–11. Capano, Giliberto, and Michael Howlett. 2019. “Causal Logics and Mechanisms in Policy Design : How and Why Adopting a Mechanistic Perspective Can Improve Policy Design.” Public Policy and Administration 0(0): 1–22.