Table 5.
Summary of results from the empirical studies in the meta-narrative review
| Discipline | Research focus | Author/year | Geography | Conceptual framework | Methods | Conditions (key considerations) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Public Administration |
Sustainable development | (Christopoulos et al., 2012) | Coratia, Nepal, Mangolia | Metagovernance | Document review and interviews | Integrated modes of governance, access to information, knowledge, Empowerment of weaker players, Interactive learning, local practices |
| Program Ministries for Youth and Families, Housing, Communities, and Integration | Karré et al. (2013) | Netherlands | JUG/WUG | Document review and semi-structured interviews | Strategic (accountability, mandate, leadership, values) and operational issues (resources, time, culture, budget, staff) | |
| New employment and administration reforms (NAV) | Christensen et al. (2014) | Norway | Accountability framework in JUG. Political, administrative, legal, professional, and social accountability | Document analysis and survey | Multidimensional legal ability beyond hierarchical, leadership | |
| Sustainable Development plan and strategy | Vitola and Senfelde (2015) | Latvia | Policy coordination | Document analysis and survey | Informal aspects (organizational culture, social capital, networks) | |
| Social Inclusion Agenda | (Carey et al., 2015) | Australia | JUG | Semi-structured interviews | Coherence between institutional and operational level | |
| Political science | Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) | (Kraak, 2011) | South Africa | Horizontal coordination | Document review | Civil servant capacities-dialogic interaction, situated knowledge, boundary spanning |
|
Environmental sciences |
REDD+ implementation | Ravikumar et al. (2015) | Six countries (Brazil, Peru, Cameroon, Tanzania, Indonesia, Vietnam) | Multilevel governance | Likert scale rating, Qualitative data: interviews, field notes and observations | Context-specificity, technico-political support, data-sharing, interest and power understanding |
| Integrated approach to disaster risk management (DRM) and climate change adaptation (CCA) | Howes et al. (2015) | Australia | WUG and network governance | Literature review, comparative case study of reports, semi-structured interviews, workshop | Shared policy vision, multi-level planning, integrating legislation, networking organizations, and cooperative funding | |
| National adaptation of REDD+ | Fujisaki et al. (2016) | Five countries-Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Papua New Guinea, and Vietnam | Not mentioned | Policy document review and key-informant interviews | Institutional arrangements-space, participation(political, technical, resource-oriented) and communication, legitimacy and ability influenced by existing mechanism | |
| Integration of REDD+ in existing national agendas | Korhonen-Kurki et al. (2016) | Brazil, Cameroon, Indonesia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Tanzania and Vietnam | Multi-level governance | Interviews | Building on existing mechanisms, explicating institutional complexity, flow of information, trust, regulatory role | |
| Climate policy integration | Di Gregorio et al. (2017) | Indonesia | Policy coherence and integration | literature, official policy documents and interviews | Power and interests, fragmented responsibilities, departmental resistance | |
| Climate change and water-energy-food nexus | Pardoe et al. (2017) | Tanzania | Not mentioned | Document analysis and key-informant interviews | Institutional frameworks, power imbalances, data sharing | |
| Health sciences | Nutrition | Webb et al. (2001) | Australia | Not mentioned | Survey | Organizational development ,capacity building, formative evaluation method, planned joint action, strong relationships |
| Nutrition | Fear and Barnett (2003) | New Zealand | Not mentioned | Case study-Project reports, interviews, govt. documents, published research | Commitment, value collaboration, entrepreneurial style of leadership with agency autonomy | |
| Nutrition | Khayatzadeh-Mahani et al. (2016) | Iran | Kingdon’s multiple stream model (agenda setting and implementation) | Qualitative methods | Presence of evidence, legal instruments, policy entrepreneurs, political commitment | |
| Nutrition | Pomeroy-Stevens et al. (2016a) | Uganda | Not mentioned | longitudinal mixed methods (budget data, interviews) | Unified identity, human resources, sustainable structures, coordination, advocacy, and adaptation to local needs | |
| Nutrition | Pomeroy-Stevens et al. (2016b) | Nepal | Not mentioned | longitudinal mixed-method design | Human resources, ownership, bottom-up planning, coordination, advocacy, and sustainable structures | |
| Nutrition | Kim et al. (2017) | India | Degree of convergence | Semi-structured interviews | shared goals/motivation, clear leadership, mutual understanding of roles close inter-personal communication and vicinity, understanding of roles and responsibilities | |
| Nutrition | Harris et al. (2017) | Zambia | Not mentioned | longitudinal, qualitative case-study methodology | Policy coherence, political and financial commitment, combination of material, strategic and technical support | |
| Early childhood Development | Johns (2010) | Rural Australia | Conceptualization around social capital, trust, leadership | Case study methodology, multiple case study design | Social capital, leadership influencing processes roes and structure, environmental factors (structural and broader issues) | |
| Urban health/healthy cities | Bergeron and Lévesque (2012) | Canada | Not mentioned | Case study-Document review and interviews | Mix of formal and informal collaboration mechanisms | |
| Urban health/healthy cities | Kang (2016) | Korea | Tool to measure inter-agency collaboration and integration | Postal survey | Sufficient resources, knowledge and expertise, common vision and goals, close relationships, and leadership | |
| Alcohol | De Goeij et al. (2016) | Dutch | Not mentioned | Retrospective multiple case study (document analysis and in-depth interviews) | Framing as societal problem, enthusiastic employees, resources (money and time), political support, local media, dedicated leadership | |
| Alcohol and obesity | Peters, Klijn, et al. (2017a) | Netherland | Policy Networks | Web-based survey | Network management and trust for policy coordination and integration | |
| Alcohol and obesity | (Peters et al., 2017. ) | Netherland | Not mentioned | Multiple case study | Intersectoral composition from policy development stage | |
| Obesity | Hendriks et al. (2013) | Netherland | Behaviour change wheel | Case study design (in-depth interviews) | Sufficient resources (time, money, and policy free space), close social ties and physical proximity, reframing health issues in common language | |
| Mental Health | Horspool et al., 2016) | United Kingdom | Not mentioned | Cross-sectional qualitative (interviews) | Local context (geography and population size of a location),previous cross-sectoral experience and perception, stakeholder support, understanding of roles and responsibilities of other agency | |
| Primary Health Services | Anaf et al. (2014) | South Australia and northern territory | Not mentioned | Qualitative case study (interviews and document review) | Sufficient human and financial resources, diverse backgrounds and skills and personal rewards for sustaining | |
| Malaria | Mlozi et al. (2015) | Tanzania | Not mentioned | Documentary review, self-administered interviews and group discussion | Engagement of involved sectors in planning and development of policy guidelines, aligning the sectoral mandates and management culture | |
| School health | Pucher et al. (2015a) | Netherlands | DIagnosis of Sustainable Collaboration (DISC) model | Cross-sectional quantitative data | Perceived common vision, trust and investment of resources | |
| School health | Pucher et al. (2015b) | Netherlands | DIagnosis of Sustainable Collaboration (DISC) model | Mixed-methods approach: quantitative data and interviews | Involved and informed decision-making process, supporting task accomplishment, coordination of collaborative process | |
| School health | Tooher et al. (2017) | Australia | Not mentioned | Qualitative study: interviews | Communication of policy decisions, personal relationships, timing of collaboration, skilled stakeholder for aligning agendas. Champions, support of local leaders | |
| School health | De Sousa et al. (2017) | Brazil | Mendes-Gonçalves on the working process for health care and the elements | Interviews and observations | Structured and shared planning, training of professional, financial and material resources, willingness to work together | |
| Tobacco | Lencucha et al. (2015) | Philippines | JUG | Interviews | Power differential, vested (industry) interest, challenging institutional arrangements | |
| Health equity | Storm et al. (2016) | Netherlands | Theoretical model for reducing inequities | Document analysis and interviews | Strengthen existing links, role clarity, related activities and objectives, political choice | |
| Health equity | Storm et al. (2016) | Netherlands | Not mentioned | Document analysis, questionnaire, interviews | Good relationships, positive experiences, a common interest, use of same language, sufficient resources, supportive departmental managers and responsible aldermen | |
| Health equality | Scheele et al. (2018) | Scandinavian countries | health equity governance (politics, organization and knowledge) | Interviews | Political commitment and budgeting, horizontal and vertical coordination, presence of evidence | |
| Municipal/local govt | Spiegel et al. (2012) | Cuba | Not mentioned | mixed methods design, using a two-phased descriptive approach | Accountable health councils, organization structure, policy orientation, political will | |
| Municipal/local govt | Larsen et al. (2014) | Denmark | Not mentioned | Document review and semi-structured interviews | Political support, public engagement and participation, local media, establishment of health funds and network | |
| Municipal/local govt | (Hendriks et al. (2015) | Dutch | COM-B system [Capability, Opportunity, Motivation (COM), and Behavior (B)] | Semi-structured interviews and observations | Flatter organizational structures and coaching of officials by managers | |
| Municipal/local govt | Holt et al. (2017) | Denmark | Theory of organizational neo-institutionalism | Ethnographic study- semi-structured and informal interviews | Framing of problem, essential for policy or intervention. Narrow focus, inadequate to address broader structural determinants | |
| Municipal/local Govt. | Hagen et al. (2017) | Norway | Not mentioned | Cross-sectional study-Register and survey data | Specific public health coordinator, using cross- sectorial working groups, inter-municipal collaboration, confidence in capability, established cross-sector working group | |
| Health in All Policies (HiAP) Evaluation | Baum et al. (2014) | Australia | Applying the programme logic approach to HiAP | Semi-structured interviews, online surveys of policy actors, detailed case analysis | Presence of a co-operation strategy, Health Lens Analysis process, central governance-enabled shared understanding, uncover and negotiate for inclusive participation | |
| HiAP conduciveness | Friel et al. (2015) | WHO western Pacific region | WHO 2013 framework Demonstrating a Health in All Policies Analytic Framework for Learning from Experiences | Review of peer reviewed and grey literature, interviews | Evolving and sustaining partnerships, clear strategy, infrastructure and sustainable financing mechanisms, linking individual agency with structural changes organizations | |
| HiAP implementation support | Delany et al. (2014) | South Australia | South Australian HiAP approach (Baum et al., 2014) | Semi-structured interviews and workshops | Resourced centrally mandated unit, Joint governance structures and mandates, appeal of the unit, establishing trust and credibility, aligning core business and strategic priorities | |
|
Methodological application: HiAP lessons |
Baum et al. (2017) | South Australia | Institutional policy analysis framework (ideas, actors, institutions) | document analysis, a log of key events, detailed interviews, two surveys of public servants. | Dedicated HiAP Unit, A new Public Health Act, Existence of a supportive, knowledgeable policy network, political support, supportive network of public servants | |
|
Methodological application: Qualitative comparative analysis |
Peters et al. (2017b) | Netherlands | Policy networks | Web based survey | Network diversity, network management for resource mobilization and reduction of adversity and complexity | |
| Methodological application: Realist methodology | Shankardass et al. (2015) | Sweden, Quebec, Australia | Realist-CMO configuration | Systemic literature search and interviews | Stakeholder previous experience of working in Health Impact Assessments, thorough interministerial process, legislative mandate | |
|
Methodological application Coalition theory |
O’Neill et al. (1997) | Canada | Coalition theory | Historical document review, questionnaire, interviews | Effective collation among acquaintances, strong political link, believe in the cause, expert (informational resource) or power structure of the community (positional resource), information channels, persuasive, conflict resolution type of leadership |