Jurisdictional scans: methodological considerations for systematically analysing and comparing policy approaches across different jurisdictions.

Abstract

Background: Jurisdictional scans are used to inform policy by systematically comparing how different jurisdictions define problems, design policies, and implement strategies. They provide insights into policy options, implementation experiences, and gaps in preparedness, making them valuable tools for evidence-informed decision-making. However, no established methodological standards exist currently. This article provides an overview of the methodological considerations of conducting jurisdictional scans, drawing on the authors' methodological experience.

Methods: We outline issues for consideration in conducting jurisdictional scans, drawing on our experience from a recent jurisdictional scan of public health preparedness mechanisms. Our methodological reflections are informed by established evidence synthesis principles, adapted to the unique features of a jurisdictional scan. A worked example illustrates key stages, including defining scope, searching, screening, data extraction, and synthesis.

Results: Our experience highlights the importance of applying systematic approaches to maximise transparency, reproducibility, and credibility. We found that policy documents often lacked abstracts, standardised structures, or clear evidence use, making screening and extraction challenging. Iterative refinement of inclusion criteria, piloting of search strategies, keyword searching, and structured frameworks for data extraction were essential for achieving consistency. Importantly, while multiple forms of evidence (e.g., guidelines, modelling, evaluations) were cited in preparedness plans, the role of evidence in shaping decisions was often unclear, revealing a key limitation of current practice.

Conclusion: With the growing importance of evidence-informed policymaking, there is an urgent need to establish robust methodological standards and reporting guidelines for jurisdictional scans. This paper provides methodological considerations for jurisdictional scans, offering practical guidance while recognising ongoing challenges. By clarifying the value, limitations, and distinct role of jurisdictional scans, we aim to strengthen their contribution to policy processes and support future methodological development. Future research is warranted to refine the methodological and reporting standards of the process while maintaining flexibility for different policy contexts.

Plain language summary: Jurisdictional scans are a way to see how different countries, regions, or organisations handle the same problem. They help show what choices governments have, how plans work in real life, and where the weaknesses are. Jurisdictional scans gather information from official documents, rules, and reports to learn from what others are doing. Our paper explains issues to consider in how to do a jurisdictional scan. This includes choosing which places to look at, finding and picking the right documents, pulling out the important information, and then putting it all together. If done well, jurisdictional scans can offer useful lessons to leaders and policymakers. But there are still challenges, like policies being written in very different ways, or not showing clearly how evidence is used. By giving clear instructions, this paper helps make jurisdictional scans more consistent and helpful for better decisions.