Multi-level multi-actor and multi-issue governance processes, primarily in the knowledge policy domains (higher education and research).
Specifically interested in the role of stakeholder organizations in interest intermediation and policy transfer across governance levels, as well as the relationship between policy coordination and policy convergence.

GOV353 - Qualitative methods

GOV332 - Forskningsdesign

GOV327 - Knowledge, Politics and Organization

Academic article

• Michael Oduro Asante; Martina Vukasovic (2026). What shapes inter- and intra-sectoral career transfer patterns of interest group leaders. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2026). Identity (re)-formation during transformative reorganisation processes: comparative analysis of three mergers in Norway. (external link)
• Alina Felder-Stindt; Martina Vukasovic (2025). Who you gonna call … when developing a flagship initiative in an area of limited EU competence? A resource exchange perspective on the development of the European Universities Initiative (EUI). (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Julie M. Birkholz; Jelena Brankovic (2019). Is the Europe of Knowledge the talk of the town? Exploring how members of the European Parliament refer to higher education. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Bjørn Stensaker (2018). University alliances in the Europe of knowledge: Positions, agendas and practices in policy processes. (external link)
• Tatiana Fumasoli; Bjørn Stensaker; Martina Vukasovic (2018). Tackling the multi-actor and multi-level complexity of European governance of knowledge: Transnational actors in focus. (external link)
• Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic; Isabel Steinhardt (2018). Higher education policy dynamics in turbulent times – access to higher education for refugees in Europe. (external link)
• Meng-Hsuan Chou; Jens Jungblut; Pauline Ravinet et al. (2017). Higher Education Governance and Policy: An Introduction to Multi-issue, Multi-level, and Multi-actor Dynamics. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2017). Stakeholder organizations in the European higher education area: exploring transnational policy dynamic. (external link)
• Jens Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic (2017). Not all markets are created equal: Re-conceptualizing market elements in higher education.. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Jeroen Huisman (2017). Europeanization, cross-national policy transfer or opportunism of domestic policy entrepreneurs? A comparative study of impact of European initiatives in higher education.. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2015). Concluding comments: when international, European and domestic influences collide. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2014). When and how does Europe matter? Higher education policy change in Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2014). Institutionalisation of internal quality assurance: focusing on institutional work and the significance of disciplinary differences. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2014). Universities and Public Contestation during Social and Political Crises: Belgrade University in the 1990s. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2013). Change of higher education in response to European pressures: Conceptualization and operationalization of Europeanization of higher education. (external link)
• Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic (2013). And Now for Something Completely Different? Re-Examining Hybrid Steering Approaches in Higher Education. (external link)

Academic book chapter

• Martina Vukasovic (2023). Interest Groups and Intermediary Structures in Higher Education Policy in Western Europe. (external link)
• Jens Jungblut; Bjørn Stensaker; Martina Vukasovic (2021). University Rankings and students’ information needs: what is the relation?. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2019). Analysing policy positions of stakeholder organizations in higher education: What, how and why?. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2019). The Looseness of Loose Coupling: The Use and Misuse of “Loose Coupling” in Higher Education Research. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Meng-Hsuan Chou et al. (2018). Multi-level, Multi-actor and Multi-issue Dimensions of Governance of the European Higher Education Area, and Beyond. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2018). European level policy dynamics in higher education. (external link)
• Jens Jungblut; Bjørn Stensaker; Martina Vukasovic (2018). What kind of quality assurance leads to improved performance and accountability? The views of European students. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2018). Stakeholder organizations and multi-level governance of higher education.. (external link)
• Harry De Boer; Jon File; Jeroen Huisman et al. (2017). Structural reform in European higher education: concluding reflections. (external link)
• Harry De Boer; Jon File; Jeroen Huisman et al. (2017). Structural reform in higher education: An introduction.. (external link)
• Jelena Brankovic; Martina Vukasovic (2017). Partial horizontal differentiation in Croatian higher education: How ideas, institutions and interests affect the policy process. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2016). Contestation over integration and autonomy of universities in the former Yugoslavia: how global and European ideas are used in domestic politics. (external link)
• Bjørn Stensaker; Jelena Brancovic; Maja Kovacevic et al. (2014). Introduction. (external link)
• Bjørn Stensaker; Jelena Brancovic; Maja Kovacevic et al. (2014). Epilogue. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2014). Dynamics of voluntary coordination: actors and networks in the Bologna Process. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2014). How Can and How Does Europe Matter?. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2014). Quality assurance in Croatia and Serbia: Analysis of Changes of Policy and Internal Organizational Practices. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Mari Elken (2013). Higher education policy dynamics in a multi-level governance context: Comparative study of four post-Communist countries. (external link)
• Peter Maassen; Monika Nerland; Romulo Pinheiro et al. (2012). Change Dynamics and Education Reforms: Effects on Education, Research, Governance and Academic Profession. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2012). Europeanization of the Education Function of Universities: Preliminary Comparison of Norway and Poland. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Claudia Sarrico (2010). INEQUALITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION: Definitions, Measurements, Inferences. The Serbian Case. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2010). Finance and Public Accountability. (external link)
• John L. Davies; Martina Vukasovic (2010). Strategic Planning and Policy Formation. (external link)

Book anthology

• Harry de Boer; Jon File; Jeroen Huisman et al. (2017). Policy Analysis of Structural Reforms in Higher Education. Processes and Outcomes. (external link)
• Jelena Brankovic; Maja Kovacevic; Peter Maassen et al. (2014). The Re-Institutionalization of Higher Education in the Western Balkans: The Interplay between European Ideas, Domestic Policies, and Institutional Practices. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Peter Maassen; Monika Nerland et al. (2012). Effects of Higher Education Reforms: Change Dynamics. (external link)

Conference lecture

• Martina Vukasovic; Mari Elken; Jens Jungblut (2026). Coupling of rules and practices in higher education. (external link)
• Michael Oduro Asante; Martina Vukasovic (2025). Career Transfers of Interest Group Leaders: Evidence from Norwegian Education. (external link)
• Hanne Kvilhaugsvik; Martina Vukasovic (2025). Frontstage and backstage of internal interest group democracy. (external link)
• Terhi Nokkala; Joel Parhiala; Martina Vukasovic et al. (2024). Policy capacity and temporal dynamics of interest groups: the case of Finnish higher education stakeholders. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2023). Role of national and transnational interest organizations in global knowledge governance. (external link)
• Alina Felder; Martina Vukasovic (2023). Co-creation of the European Universities Initiative (EUI): the role of higher education associations. (external link)
• Anna Prisca Lohse; Lukas Graf; Martina Vukasovic (2023). Exploring policy capacity generation of interest groups in German education politics. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Lise Degn; Jens Jungblut et al. (2023). Organising for excellence in education and research. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic; Nicoline Frølich (2022). Transformative re-organisations and identity formation in higher education. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2022). Homogeneity / heterogeneity of national level interest groups: the case of student unions. (external link)
• Nicoline Frølich; Martina Vukasovic; Mari Elken et al. (2021). Pressing problems in researching structural reforms and mergers in higher education. (external link)
• Natalia Leskina; Martina Vukasovic (2021). Eurasian higher education area: exploring the role of policy transfer in a regime complex. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2021). Performance contracts and mergers in Norwegian HE: Exploring the interactions between concurrent policy reforms. (external link)
• Alina Felder; Martina Vukasovic (2021). How organised interest shaped an EU flagship initiative: Higher education associations and the European Universities Initiative. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2021). European cooperation in higher education: still going strong against all odds?. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2020). Interest groups and intermediary structures in higher education in Western Europe. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2018). Is Europe losing its mojo? Exploring the European side of differentiated integration in HE. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2018). Policy coordination and policy convergence in the Nordics. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic; Mari Elken (2017). Regional policy coordination and policy convergence in higher education. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2017). Inter-institutional Tensions in Multi-level Governance of Higher Education: European and National Level Ideas, Capabilities and Realities. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2015). Comparing regionalisms within Europe: Balkans, Baltics, Benelux and Nordics in the context of multi-level governance. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic (2013). Exploring patterns of participation of collective and individual actors in the Bologna Process: Implications for the analysis of European and national HE policy dynamics. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2013). Studying organizational change in higher educationin a multi-level governance context: Theoretical and methodological implications of using institutional theory. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2012). Between domestic concerns, policy transfer and Europeanization:Policy change with respect to internal organizational structure of universities in Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2012). The role of European initiatives in higher education for national policy dynamics: cases of Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2011). Europeanization of higher education systems and institutions: Theoretical expectations and empirical findings. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic (2011). Network dynamics of the Bologna process. (external link)

Lecture

• Siri Brorstad Borlaug; Mari Elken; Martina Vukasovic et al. (2024). Strukturreformen - hva nå?. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic (2016). Multi-level multi-actor dynamics of European knowledge policy-making.. (external link)

Media feature article

• Nicoline Frølich; Martina Vukasovic; Ivar Bleiklie (2021). Politikken som formet strukturreformen. (external link)

Other presentation

• Michael Oduro Asante; Tiril Smerud Finnanger; Marte Lorentzen et al. (2026). POLCAP Policy capacity of interest organizations. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2026). Policy capacity of UHR. (external link)

Policy report

• Martina Vukasovic; Nicoline Frølich; Ivar Bleiklie et al. (2021). Policy processes shaping the Norwegian Structural Reform. (external link)

Professional article

• Martina Vukasovic (2011). Mechanisms of Change in Higher Education Institutions. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2011). Governance of Higher Education in the Countries and Territories of Former Yugoslavia Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, “The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” and Kosovo. (external link)

Research report

• Jens Patrick Wilhelm Jungblut; Martina Vukasovic (2013). Quest for Quality for Students. Survey on students' perspectives. (external link)
• Martina Vukasovic (2012). European integration in higher education in the Western Balkan countries (WBC): A review of literature. (external link)
• Mari Elken; Åse Gornitzka; Peter Maassen et al. (2011). European integration and the transformation of higher education. (external link)

See a complete overview of publications in NVA.

Principal investigator / project leader:

POLCAP - Policy capacity of interest groups (2021-2025, funded by Research Council of Norway)

 

Project partner:

Re-Structure - Evaluation of the 2015 Structural Reform in Norwegian Higher Education (coordinated by NIFU) 

Coupling - Organisational coupling of higher education institutions (coordinated by NIFU)