ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the German policy expertise scheme, and identifies both the supply of and the demand for expert policy advice. It starts with a cautionary note on the analytic need for clarity in the use of the German term 'Politikberatung': the imprecise and extensive use of Politikberatung in Germany, which comprises policy advice and political consulting. It also increasingly activities such as public affairs and lobbying, is blurring the borders and thus may hinder the development of adequate theories on expertise and politics. A clear analytic separation of these terms is thus necessary: therefore the chapter deals with the role and impact of 'scientific' policy expertise located outside the line bureaucracies in Germany. It focuses on the scholarly study of policy advice and expertise in Germany, and analyses the history, development, and current status of different organizational types of policy advice organizations operating in Germany within their cultural and institutional frameworks.
