No 2019/4 How Term Limits Constrain the Emergence of Agency and Resilience

Abstract

This paper investigates how timing norms affect the emergence of agency in regional resilience. It forwards three arguments: timing norms establish the boundary for action and generates corollary timing norms that schedule adaptive strategies, term limits shape incentives for institutional work, and the interplay of term limits, institutional work, and agency, shape the path of regions for adaptation or adaptability. Findings show that incentives for policy action arises at the beginning of terms, term limits generate incentives for types of institutional work. Layering is not effective in maintaining resource allocation to agendas, affecting regional tendencies for adaptation and adaptability.