Outlook for Intergovernmental Science and Technology: Partnership or Manipulation?

Abstract

The decade of the 1980s has tested the American federal system. Budget deficits, international economic competition, and other pressures have forced local, state, and federal officials to restructure their relationships. Nowhere has this been more apparent than in the area of science and technology (S&T) policy. Traditionally dominated by the federal government, S&T decisions increasingly have become intergovernmental in character. But true partnerships have been difficult to develop and maintain. These difficulties are outlined through an examination of two distinct "eras" of intergovernmental S&T policy. Then as assessment is made of current and projected intergovernmental S&T initiatives. It is argued that a major complicating factor, generally overlooked in analyses of this policy arena, is the "international connection." Program implementation, participant views, and institutional cultures appear to be key factors in integrating this international dimension.