Municipal Policy Responses to Violent Extremism: An Institutional Theory Perspective

This paper explores and explains municipal policy responses to the grand challenge of violent extremism. Drawing on a content analysis of 60 Scandinavian municipal policies and using concepts from new institutional theory, the findings reveal that municipalities mainly translate and edit a variety of practices originally developed for purposes other than countering violent extremism, which result in an unfocused response with the risk of unintended and problematic consequences. Taken together, the results illustrate the downside of pressuring and rushing municipalities into co-producing efforts to counter or prevent the emergence or consequences of grand challenges without offering appropriate support or considering the specific objectives and limitations of municipal operations.