Policy capacity for crisis management : cases from Asia

Abstract

This thesis examines the relationships of policy capacity elements in crisis management through case studies of Hong Kong and other countries' crisis episodes. It highlights the importance of political capacity in understanding policy actions in crisis contexts and proposes a novel "crisis-to-crisis" framework that connects crises for a more comprehensive analysis. The policy capacity framework, widely used by public policy scholars, is extended to crisis management contexts. Eight case studies form two levels of comparative analysis. The first level consists of four connected crisis management cases in Hong Kong (SARS, Covid-19, Occupy Central Movement, and Extradition Law Amendment Bill crisis), aiming to uncover common patterns across different crises. The second level compares Singapore's responses to SARS and Covid-19 with those of Hong Kong. The methodology combines paired comparison strategy and process tracing. Findings reveal a decline in Hong Kong's policy capacity between 2014-2019, with political capacity decline significantly affecting Covid-19 responses, such as vaccination failure. Comparing with Singapore, which did not suffer a similar political crisis in 2019, further highlights the critical role of political capacity in successful crisis management. The study also examines Thailand's anti-government protests and crisis management, confirming the significance of political capacity and its inability to be circumvented by using violence. The novel "crisis-to-crisis" framework emphasizes the importance of political capacity in crisis contexts, with patterns not heavily dependent on the context. However, it should be noted that the cases analyzed involve higher-middle income economies, and findings may differ for lower-income economies. The thesis concludes with a theorization of the "crisis-to-crisis" framework and the Gearbox Model, which depict relationships between policy capacity elements in crisis contexts. Future research questions include improving political capacity at low points, contributing to a better understanding of policy capacity for crisis management and promoting evidence-based lessons.

Date of Award	2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Supervisor	Xun WU (Supervisor)