Policy formulation as a choice between policy instruments. A case study on the selection of policy instruments in Flanders.

When policy makers decide on new policy initiatives, they ideally base their policy instrument choice on a complete evaluation of different policy instrument options. In Flanders, a mandatory regulatory impact assessment (RIA) is aimed at directing policy makers towards fully-informed and optimal policy instrument decisions. In this doctoral study, I investigated whether policymakers in practice are able to make optimal policy instrument choices based on complete information of all alternatives. I conducted an extensive qualitative research using semi-structured interviews with 56 representatives of elected officials, public administrations and societal stakeholders involved in the development of new legislative initiatives. These legislative initiatives were selected from four different policy domains of the Flemish regional government: Work and Social Economy; Environment, Nature and Energy; Spatial Planning, Housing Policy and Immovable Heritage; and Well-being, Public Health and Family Policy. The interviews have been systematically coded and analyzed using the software program NVivo.