How do institutional conditions influence research use by policy makers?

Effective use of research in policy making is essential to address persistent societal challenges and respond to emerging issues. While much is known about individual preferences and practices of policy-maker research use, the structuring role of institutionalised influences remains less understood. This article addresses that gap by examining how institutional conditions shape research use in policy making, drawing on survey data from 1,606 respondents in Norwegian ministries and directorates. We analyse policy makers’ perceptions of four types of institutional conditions – formal instruction, financial and infrastructural support, peer environment, and informal encouragement - and their relationship to instrumental, conceptual and symbolic uses of research. The findings show that encouraging institutional conditions are stronger determinants of research use than enabling ones, and that the distinction between formal and informal conditions matters. Formal instruction is associated with conceptual use, supporting long-term reflection and planning, while informal encouragement is more strongly linked to instrumental use in short-term, time-constrained policy tasks.