Think tank

 

By : Dr. Saeed Rahnama

A policy institute (often termed "think tank" by journalists) is an organization that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most policy institutes are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax exempt status. Other think tanks are funded by governments, advocacy groups, or businesses, or derive revenue from consulting or research work related to their projects. 2011 Global Go To Think Tank Rankings cover most of the major policy institutes worldwide

The following article lists global policy institutes according to continental categories, and then sub-categories by country within those areas. These listings are not comprehensive, given that more than 4,500 policy institutes exist world wide

 

History

While the term "think tank" with its present sense originated during the 1950s,[citation needed] such organizations date to the 19th century. The Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI) was initiated during 1831 in London. The Fabian Society in Britain dates from 1884. The Brookings Institution began in Washington, D.C. during 1916

After 1945, the number of policy institutes increased, as many small new ones were formed to express various issue and policy agendas. Until the 1940s, most policy institutes were known only by the name of the institute. During the Second World War, think tanks were often referred to as "brain boxes" after the slang term for skull. The phrase "think tank" in wartime American slang referred to rooms where strategists discussed war planning. Later the term "think tank" was used to refer to organizations that offered military advice—- such as, perhaps most notably, the RAND Corporation, initiated originally during 1946 as an offshoot of Douglas Aircraft Corporation, and which became an independent corporation during 1948

For most of the 20th century, independent public policy institutes that performed research and provided advice concerning public policy were found primarily in the United States, with a much smaller number in Canada, the UK and Western Europe. Although think tanks existed in Japan for some time, they generally lacked independence, having close associations with government ministries or corporations. There has been a veritable proliferation of "think tanks" around the world that began during the 1980s as a result of globalization, the end of the Cold War, and the emergence of transnational problems. Two-thirds of all the think tanks that exist today were established after 1970 and more than half were established since 1980

The effect of globalization on the existence of policy institutes is most evident in regions such as Africa, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and parts of Southeast Asia, where there was a concerted effort by the international community to assist the creation of independent public policy research organizations. A recent survey performed by the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program underscores the significance of this effort and documents the fact that most of the think tanks in these regions have been established during the last 10 years. Presently there are more than 4,500 of these institutions around the world. Many of the more established think tanks, having been created during the Cold War, are emphasize international affairs, security studies, and foreign policy

 

Policy institutes vary by ideological perspectives, sources of funding, topical emphasis and prospective consumers.Some think tanks, such as the Heritage Foundation, which promotes conservative principles, and the Center for American Progress, a progressive organization, are more partisan in purpose. Others, including the Tellus Institute, which emphasizes social and environmental topics, are more issue-oriented groups. Still others, such as the Cato Institute, promote libertarian social and economic theories based on Friedrich von Hayek's idea of free markets and individual liberty

Funding sources and the consumers intended also define the workings of think tanks. Some receive direct government assistance, while others rely on private individual or corporate donors. This will invariably affect the degree of academic freedom within each policy institute and to whom or what the institution feels beholden. Funding may also represent who or what the institution wants to influence; in the United States, for example, "Some donors want to influence votes in Congress or shape public opinion, others want to position themselves or the experts they fund for future government jobs, while others want to push specific areas of research or education."

A new trend, resulting from globalization, is collaboration between policy institutes in different countries. For instance, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace operates offices in Washington, D.C., Beijing, Beirut, Brussels and Moscow

The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) at the University of Pennsylvania annually rates policy institutes worldwide in a number of categories and presents its findings in the "Global Go-To Think Tanks" rating index.However, this method of the study and assessment of policy institutes has been criticised by researchers such as Enrique Mendizabal and Goran Buldioski, Director of the Think Tank Fund, assisted by the Open Society Institute

Several authors have indicated a number of different methods of describing policy institutes in a way that takes into account regional and national variations. For example from Diane Stone Diane Stone (2005):

Independent civil society policy institutes established as non-profit organisations –ideologically identifiable or not

Policy research institutes affiliated with a university

Governmentally created or state sponsored policy institutes

Corporate created or business affiliated policy institutes

Political party policy institutes and legacy or personal policy institutes

Global (or regional) policy institutes (with some of the above)

Alternatively, one could use some of the criteria following:

Size and focus: e.g. large and diversified, large and specialised, small and specialised

Evolution of stage of development: e.g. first (small), second (small to large but more complex projects), and third (larger and policy influence) stages

Strategy, including: Funding sources (individuals, corporations, foundations, donors/governments, endowments, sales/events) and business model (independent research, contract work, advocacy); The balance between research, consultancy, and advocacy; The source of their arguments: Ideology, values or interests; applied, empirical or synthesis research; or theoretical or academic research (Stephen Yeo); The manner in which the research agenda is developed—by senior members of the think tank or by individual researchers, or by the think tank of their funders; Their influencing approaches and tactics (many researchers but an interesting one comes from Abelson) and the time horizon for their strategies: long term and short term mobilisation; Their various audiences of the think tanks (audiences as consumers and public -this merits another blog; soon) (again, many authors, but Zufeng provides a good framework for China); and Affiliation, which refers to the issue of independence (or autonomy) but also includes think tanks with formal and informal links to political parties, interest groups and other political players