Shared mental models lock in policy because interpretations are costly to unlearn.

Evidence

Path dependency in policymaking processes can be understood as a kind of ‘context-bound rationality’ shared among policy actors (Kay, 2005, p. 564; see also Mayntz, 2002, pp. 27–30). Due to the complexity of policy processes and the uncertain results of alternative policies, politicians or institutions act according to the predominant guiding assumptions. These collective interpretations are subject to self-reinforcing feedback processes because the formation of fundamental social understandings entails high start-up costs and learning effects. Moreover, socially shared interpretations and assumptions lead to adaptive expectations and coordination effects among social actors (Pierson, 2000b, p. 79; see also Thelen, 2003, p. 209 and pp. 216–217). — Georg Schreyögg and Jörg Sydow, The Hidden Dynamics of Path Dependence, 1012

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines path dependency in policymaking as context-bound rationality — the load-bearing concept the chapter turns on.