ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø

Gavel and scales of justice on a green-felted desk in front of bookshelves.
Feature: How U.S. Courts Privilege Conservative Policy Outcomes

Maya Sen assesses the institutional and compositional features of U.S. federal courts that tend to bias them toward conservative policy outcomes.

Map of the united states with a pin in the midwest.
Feature: The U.S. Place-Based Policy Supply Chain

Dani Rodrik and Gordon Hanson document how vertical policy supply chains distribute resources from federal and state governments to recipients at the local level.

Political leader speaks into a microphone at a podium with an advisor standing behind her.
Feature: How Does Shaming Human Rights Violators Abroad Shape Attitudes at Home?

Lotem Bassan-Nygate theorizes that by shaming human rights violators abroad, governments can improve their image at home but may encourage tolerance toward certain domestic violations.

Two people sit at a desk in front of a laptop with rows of filing cabinets behind them.
Feature: Thinking (about Peace Science) in Time

Erica Chenoweth speaks to colleagues in the peace science community, reflecting on the world events that have shaped their scholarship and how researchers might think about the current geopolitical moment.

Harvard Kennedy School faculty disseminate their research in working publications and papers that contribute to public knowledge and fuel policy innovation. This list features recent faculty publications, including journal articles, books, edited volumes, research papers, and public testimony.

Faculty Publications

What Is Distinctive about Religious Inequality? Challenges and Opportunities for Development Policy

Woolcock, Michael. "What Is Distinctive about Religious Inequality? Challenges and Opportunities for Development Policy." Poverty and Prejudice: Religious Inequality and the Struggle for Sustainable Development. Ed. Mariz Tadros, Philip Mader, and Kathryn Cheeseman. Bristol University Press, September 19, 2023, 171-178.

Social Sustainability and the Development Process: What Is It, Why Does It Matter, and How Can It Be Enhanced?

Barron, Patrick John, Louise J. Cord, Jose Antonio Cuesta Leiva,Sabina Anne Espinoza, Gregory Michael Larson, and Michael Woolcock. "Social Sustainability and the Development Process: What Is It, Why Does It Matter, and How Can It Be Enhanced?" World Bank Policy Research Working Paper Series, June 15, 2023.

Social Sustainability in Development: Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century

Barron, Patrick, Louise Cord, José Cuesta, Sabina A. Espinoza, Greg Larson, and Michael Woolcock. "Social Sustainability in Development: Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century." World Bank Group, March 15, 2023.

Assessing and Interpreting Complex Development Interventions: Three Key Principles and Two (Intractable?) Conundrums

Woolcock, Michael. "Assessing and Interpreting Complex Development Interventions: Three Key Principles and Two (Intractable?) Conundrums." Changing Dimensions of the International Development System: New Realities and Working Differently to Overcome Delivery Challenges. Ed. Horst Fischer, Maria Gonzales de Asis, and Anselm Schneider. Lit Verlag, 2023, 181-195.

The Future of Multilateralism and Global Development: Opportunities for Constitutive and Functional Reform

Singh, J.P., and Michael Woolcock. "The Future of Multilateralism and Global Development: Opportunities for Constitutive and Functional Reform." Global Perspectives 3.1 (December 2022): 57594.

Innovations in Translation, Advocacy, and Engagement in Global Development

Lewis, David, Dennis Rodgers, and Michael Woolcock. "Innovations in Translation, Advocacy, and Engagement in Global Development." New Mediums, Better Messages? How Innovations in Translation, Engagement and Advocacy are Changing International Development. Ed. David Lewis, Dennis Rodgers, and Michael Woolcock. Oxford University Press, 2022, 1-15.

New Mediums, Better Messages?: How Innovations in Translation, Engagement, and Advocacy are Changing International Development

Lewis, David, Dennis Rodgers, and Michael Woolcock, eds. New Mediums, Better Messages?: How Innovations in Translation, Engagement, and Advocacy are Changing International Development. Oxford University Press, 2022.

The Sounds of Development: Musical Representation as (An)other Source of Development Knowledge

Lewis, David, Dennis Rodgers, and Michael Woolcock. "The Sounds of Development: Musical Representation as (An)other Source of Development Knowledge." New Mediums, Better Messages?: How Innovations in Translation, Engagement, and Advocacy are Changing International Development. Ed. David Lewis, Dennis Rodgers, and Michael Woolcock. Oxford University Press, 2022, 19-41.

The Sounds of Development: Musical Representations as (An)other Source of Development Knowledge

Woolcock, Michael, David Lewis, and Dennis Rodgers. "The Sounds of Development: Musical Representations as (An)other Source of Development Knowledge." Journal of Development Studies 57.8 (June 2021): 1397-1412.

The Social Life of Articles: Some Reflections on the Making and Impact of ‘Social Capital and Economic Development’

Woolcock, Michael. "The Social Life of Articles: Some Reflections on the Making and Impact of ‘Social Capital and Economic Development’." Theory and Society 50.3 (April 2021): 381-392.

Fiscal Policy in Fragile Situations: Flying in Fog with Limited Instrumentation

Woolcock, Michael, and Gary Milante. "Fiscal Policy in Fragile Situations: Flying in Fog with Limited Instrumentation." Macroeconomic Policy in Fragile States. Ed. Ralph Chami, Rafael Espinoza, and Peter Montiel. Oxford University Press, 2021, 271-296.

When do Development Projects Enhance Community Well-Being?

Woolcock, Michael. "When do Development Projects Enhance Community Well-Being?" International Journal of Community Well-Being 2 (July 2019): 81-89.

Why Does Hirschmanian Development Remain Mired on the Margins? Because Implementation (and Reform) Really is ‘a Long Voyage of Discovery’

Woolcock, Michael. "Why Does Hirschmanian Development Remain Mired on the Margins? Because Implementation (and Reform) Really is ‘a Long Voyage of Discovery’." Second Conference on Albert Hirschman’s Legacy: A Bias for Hope. Ed. Luca Mendolesi and Nicoletta Stame. Italic Digital Editions, May 2019, 78-95.

Reasons for Using Mixed Methods in the Evaluation of Complex Projects

Woolcock, Michael. "Reasons for Using Mixed Methods in the Evaluation of Complex Projects." Contemporary Philosophy and Social Science: An Interdisciplinary Dialogue. Ed. Michiru Nagatsu and Attilia Ruzzene. Bloomsbury Academic, April 2019, 149-171.

Documenting Social and Economic Transformation in Myanmar’s Rural Communities

Woolcock, Michael, Samuel Pursch, Andrea Woodhouse, and Matt Zurstrassen. "Documenting Social and Economic Transformation in Myanmar’s Rural Communities." Myanmar Transformed? People, Places, Politics. Ed. Paul Chambers, Gerard McCarthy, Nicholas Farrelly, and Chit Win. ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, October 2018, 23-51.

Alternative Approaches to Reforming the Public Sector: East Asian Experiences in Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform

Woolcock, Michael, Sokbunthoeun So, Nicola Smithers, Leah April, and Caroline Hughes. "Alternative Approaches to Reforming the Public Sector: East Asian Experiences in Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform." Alternative Paths to Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform: Experiences from East Asia. Ed. Sokbunthoeun So, Michael Woolcock, Leah April, Caroline Hughes, and Nicola Smithers. World Bank, July 2018, 1-18.

Alternative Paths to Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform: Experiences from East Asia

So, Sokbunthoeun, Michael Woolcock, Leah April, Caroline Hughes, and Nicola Smithers, eds. Alternative Paths to Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform: Experiences from East Asia. The World Bank, 2018.

Enhancing Public Health Outcomes in Developing Countries: From Good Policies and Best Practices to Better Implementation

Woolcock, Michael. "Enhancing Public Health Outcomes in Developing Countries: From Good Policies and Best Practices to Better Implementation." ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP18-016, February 2018.

Culture, Politics, and Development

Woolcock, Michael. "Culture, Politics, and Development." Oxford Handbook of the Politics of Development. Ed. Carol Lancaster and Nicholas van de Walle. Oxford University Press, June 2018, 107-122.

Alternative Paths to Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform: Experiences from East Asia

Woolcock, Michael, Leah April, Caroline Hughes, Nicola Smithers, and Sokbunthoeun So, eds. Alternative Paths to Public Financial Management and Public Sector Reform: Experiences from East Asia. World Bank, June 2018.

Enhancing Public Health Outcomes in Developing Countries: From Good Policies and Best Practices to Better Implementation

Woolcock, Michael. "Enhancing Public Health Outcomes in Developing Countries: From Good Policies and Best Practices to Better Implementation." Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 46.Suppl 22 (April 2018): 10-18.

Culture, Politics and Development

Woolcock, Michael. "Culture, Politics and Development." Oxford Handbook of the Politics of Development. Ed. Carol Lancaster and Nicholas van de Walle. Oxford University Press, 2018.

Building State Capability: Evidence, Analysis, Action

Lant Pritchett, Matthew Andrews, and Michael Woolcock. Building State Capability: Evidence, Analysis, Action. Oxford University Press, 2017.

Doing Problem Driven Work

Andrews, Matthew, Lant Pritchett, and Michael Woolcock. "Doing Problem Driven Work." ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP15-073, December 2015.

The Challenge of Building (Real) State Capability

Andrews, Matthew, Lant Pritchett, and Michael Woolcock. "The Challenge of Building (Real) State Capability." ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP15-074, December 2015.

Culture, Politics, and Development

Woolcock, Michael. "Culture, Politics, and Development." ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP14-041, September 2014.

Engaging with Fragile and Conflict-Affected States

Woolcock, Michael. "Engaging with Fragile and Conflict-Affected States." ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP14-038, July 2014.

Looking Like a State: Techniques of Persistent Failure in State Capability for Implementation

Lant Pritchett, Michael Woolcock, and Matthew Andrews. "Looking Like a State: Techniques of Persistent Failure in State Capability for Implementation." Journal of Development Studies 49.1 (January 2013): 1-18.