"Italy at a Crossroads: I. Economy Society in the 1990s; II. Coping with the South: A New Strategy for an Old Problem"

Abstract

The interaction of domestic institutional structures and preexisting ideas is critical in explaining crossnational dif# ferences in the impact of international ideas This paper argues that the interaction of decentralized policymaking and liberal gatekeepers in England led to an acceptance of educational multiculturalism, whereas this international idea found little purchase across the channel because of the combination of France's centralized educational system and its policy makers' republican and la'ique priors. By examining the case of the differential impact of educational multiculturalism in two relatively similar countries, this paper contributes to ongoing political science debates about the impact of international ideas on domestic politics.