Gradual and Transformational Change: the influence of advocacy coalition and interest groups in Public Policies

In the current debate on institutional change, we find a theoretical gap to be filled since the action of interest groups and advocacy coalitions is little explored. This paper then discusses the gradual transformative institutional change articulated by these actors as an alternative to the prevailing literature that emphasizes the enduring nature of the institutions or their change caused by external independent agency. It is proposed that a joint approach of the Advocacy Coalition Framework, Stakeholder Analysis and Thellen`s Gradual Change Model. Thus, assumptions, contributions and limitations are exposed by pointing the complementarity of these models.