Epilogue: The current status and future development of governance theories

Governance theories have arisen in the last 20 or so years to explain new challenges and new forms of governing. This Epilogue reflects on common findings and arguments of the individual chapters in the Handbook on Theories of Governance, identifying ten broad themes that cut across the chapters. Despite the diversity of governance theories, these themes describe some of the central concerns and orientations of governance theorists. This Epilogue concludes by identifying ten common research challenges identified in individual chapters. The chapters argue that addressing these challenges can advance and refine governance theories, and drawing them together in this Epilogue suggests a future research agenda for governance studies.