Institutional Order and Career Patterns: Some Comparative Considerations

Abstract

This article tries to sum up the findings of the country articles and put them into a comparative perspective. The major finding is one of great diversity among prevailing career patterns in multi-level polities. This in itself is considered an advance over frequent assumptions about career patterns based on the US case alone. Looking for causal explanations the article discards some institutional hypotheses. It therefore calls for more empirical research on institutional configurations, the time sequence in which institutions have emerged historically, and the perception and interpretation of institutional arrangements by politicians.

Keywords:

• Institutional order
• career patterns
• comparison

Notes

Parliamentary Secretary of State is a junior ministerial position in Germany which is available only to members of parliament.