The political context of public sector innovation: A critical interpretive synthesis on Ukraine

Innovation often sparks power struggles, redistributes resources, and challenges entrenched institutional legacies. Yet the role of power dynamics embedded in political contexts, particularly in non-Western countries, in shaping public sector innovation (PSI) has remained underexplored. This study addresses this gap by examining how power dynamics at multiple levels and critical junctures have shaped PSI trajectories over time in Ukraine. Drawing on historical institutionalism and using a context-specific critical interpretive synthesis of 84 studies from 1991 to 2022, we reveal how critical junctures intensified PSI and enabled new innovation priorities. However, these moments were deeply conditioned by existing power dynamics across international, national and subnational political levels. While some innovations contributed to the redistribution of power, others were stalled or fragmented owing to path dependencies. This study makes two primary theoretical contributions: first, it reconceptualizes political context as a dynamic, multilevel arena of vertical and horizontal power contestations that shapes PSI; second, it extends PSI theory by demonstrating how critical junctures operate as temporally bounded periods of constrained agency, cumulatively shaping innovation trajectories. These insights advance our understanding of the complex interplays between political contexts, power dynamics, and temporality in PSI. • PSI in developing countries requires coordinated support across international, national, and subnational political contexts. • International engagement should integrate adaptive strategies that respond to shifting political and institutional dynamics. • A nuanced understanding of power struggles and path dependencies is crucial to ensure the sustainability of PSI.