Forums play a crucial role in how polycentric governance systems adapt by allowing actors to deliberate on how to respond to exogenous change. However, the exact role of forums remains unclear, as prior studies on polycentric governance often examine different types of actors and network structures separately. To address this issue, we combine insights from actor and network level analyses to compare how actors in three Dutch metropolitan areas use forum shifting, shopping, and linking as strategies to create and adjust forums in response to a change in national spatial policy. We find that actors create and adjust forums through a combination of strategies. Combining strategies not only helps to create and adjust forums but also legitimizes their existence. Which strategies are combined depends on the interaction between actors that are both resource rich and highly active, and how these actors are positioned in a particular polycentric governance network.

中文翻译：

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多中心治理体系如何适应？荷兰大都市区探讨论坛的作用


论坛通过允许参与者审议如何应对外生变化，在多中心治理系统如何适应方面发挥着至关重要的作用。然而，论坛的确切作用仍不清楚，因为先前对多中心治理的研究经常分别考察不同类型的参与者和网络结构。为了解决这个问题，我们结合了参与者和网络层面分析的见解，比较了三个荷兰大都市区的参与者如何使用论坛转移、购物和链接作为创建和调整论坛以响应国家空间政策变化的策略。我们发现参与者通过策略组合来创建和调整论坛。组合策略不仅有助于创建和调整论坛，而且使论坛的存在合法化。组合哪些策略取决于资源丰富且高度活跃的参与者之间的互动，以及这些参与者如何在特定的多中心治理网络中定位。