How do institutions shape policy? Neo-Institutional theory and Parliament and Cabinet

This essay is concerned with the impact of institutions of the state on the policy process. Key influences in the Neo-Institutional approach to the study of policy have been the importation of ideas from organisational sociology and a growing recognition of the need to employ historical analysis to trace the evolution of policy over time. I intend, in this essay to examine Neo-Institutionalist theory, and discuss it's relevance with reference to the institutions of Parliament …

…as I mentioned in the opening paragraph are seen as the 'makers and shapers' of policy. With reference to Neo-Institutional theory, it is clear to me, that like so much in Politics, there is no one superior theoretical construct, and that for all the benefits of Neo-Institutionalism, an analytical framework, like that created by Howlett and Ramesh and mentioned earlier, is needed which permits the consideration of the entire range of factors shaping public policy.