Science Research Management

Science Research Management ›› 2022, Vol. 43 ›› Issue (10): 1-11.

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The development logic of think tanks: Concepts, dynamics, and research characteristics

Pei Ruimin1,2, Yang Guoliang1,2, Pan Jiaofeng1,2   

  1. 1. Institutes of Science and Development, Chinese Academy of Sciences，Beijing 100190, China;
    2. School of Public Policy and Management, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049,China
  • Received:2022-08-01 Revised:2022-09-21 Online:2022-10-20 Published:2022-10-21

Abstract:    Scientific decision-making is inseparable from the support of professional think tanks, but what is such an organization, what are its characteristics, and the driving force for its development and evolution have always been unsolved problems in the theoretical research and construction practice of think tanks. Facing the need for the modernization of national governance, China′s think tanks urgently need to transform and develop toward a high-quality path. 

   By using the methods of systematic literature review and content analysis, this study proposes a framework of “concepts-dynamics-research characteristics” to analyze the development and evolution of think tanks. First, this study investigates the basic concepts of think tanks and summaries the basic elements of a think tank; then, it combines the development and evolution of international and China′s think tanks, and studies the basic logic and evolution dynamics of think tanks in the development process; and finally, it proposes the development trend of think tank research.

   The main conclusions include:

    First, as a kind of decision-making consulting organization, the concept of a think tank has existed since ancient times, and it is embedded in different political systems and cultural systems, showing in a variety of organizational forms. The connotation and forms of think tanks have changed over time, which are based on the nation′s systems, ideologies, economics, and politics. Although there are certain differences in the definitions of think tanks in various documents, the concepts of think tanks have some basic elements: a think tank is a stable, independent, non-profit organization or institutional arrangement, born in response to public policies and revolving around policy issues, which carries out targeted knowledge production and reproduction to influence public opinion and serve government decision-making. The development and evolution of think tanks at home and abroad are closely related to the government′s consulting needs.
    Second, think tanks are born in response to public policies. In the development process, think tanks have gradually clarified their positioning and roles in the national governance and global governance system, which are different from government department consulting institutions, policy research institutions, and consulting companies. From the national level, think tanks are knowledge production organizations that serve government decision-making and are independent of government administration. They effectively link the relationships among multiple subjects such as politics, science, business, media, and the public, and play a key role as the bridges and links between subjects. From a global perspective, think tanks play the role of “public diplomats”, building channels and platforms for countries to participate in global governance.
    Third, the development of international modern think tanks is divided into four stages: the first stage is from the beginning of the 20th century to before World War II, the second is from the end of World War II to the 1960s, the third stage is during the Cold War, and the last stage is from the Cold War to the present. European and American think tanks started early, and after the 1870s and 1880s, Asian think tanks gradually emerged. Since the founding of the People′s Republic of China, the think tanks have been gradually established and improved, which are divided into the initial system formation stage and the modern think tank construction stage. The development trends of think tanks are enhanced specialization, scale, diversification, and institutionalization.
     Fourth, there are five driving forces for the development and evolution of think tanks, which are technological change, uncertainty, interest demands, refined governance, and organizational evolution. The interaction between the five forces interprets the internal logic of the development and evolution of think tanks, jointly determines the research paradigm of think tanks′ transformation, and promotes think tank research towards a scientific and high-quality development path.
   Fifth, think tank research needs to integrate multi-disciplinary knowledge and methods, and presents the convergent characteristics of interdisciplinarity, domain knowledge fusion, comprehensive application and innovation of theoretical methods, etc. Meanwhile, the convergent characteristics of think tank research have also led to innovations in the organizational form of think tank research.
    This study provides a reference for understanding the internal logic of the development and evolution of think tanks and inspires the development direction of think tank research. For complex, comprehensive, and realistic decision-making issues, think tank research needs to integrate multidisciplinary knowledge and methods. At the same time, the change in the research paradigm of think tanks has spawned innovations in the form of think tank research organizations. The originality of this study is to propose the five forces model for the evolution of think tanks and analyze the characteristics and trends of think tank research.

Key words: think tank organization, development logic, concept analysis, dynamics, research characteristics