The policy evolution of Bookstart

Abstract

In this article, a holistic governance framework is used to investigate the policy evolution and diffusion of the Bookstart programme. Documentary analysis is used to uncover the evolution and processes of the Bookstart programme. The findings indicate that the development of the Bookstart programme followed a 'bottom-up' to 'top-down' process that can be broadly divided into four stages: popularization, horizontal diffusion, vertical integration and civil society response. The evolution of Bookstart in Taiwan began with relations between government agencies and enterprise organizations before transitioning to relationships between central and local governments and eventually to relations between government agencies and civil society. However, Bookstart in Taiwan has failed to develop resource integration and interaction between local governments, or a local government policy network.