I am a pre-doctoral research fellow at LMU Munich and Zeppelin University, contributing to the ERC-funded projects CRISPOL and DEMOLAW. My research investigates how legal and administrative systems cope with the structural demands of modern governance — growing policy complexity, limited institutional capacity, and the need to prioritize under pressure.
Substantively, I study how these constraints shape the production, content, and implementation of policy: from legislative innovation and impact in periods of rapid change, to administrative coping in overloaded bureaucracies, to the consequences of complexity for implementation success. A central theme across my work is how institutions adapt—or fall short—when functional demands outpace control.
Methodologically, I use computational text analysis, network science, and causal inference to examine legal and policy systems in complex, multi-level settings like the EU and the US. My work has appeared — among other — in Political Analysis, Public Administration Review, and the Journal of European Public Policy.
I hold an M.A. in Political Science and Public Administration from the University of Konstanz and a B.A. in Political Science from LMU Munich. I am currently completing my PhD at LMU Munich (expected 2025).
Publications
Peer-reviewed journal articles
Kaplaner, C., Knill, C., & Steinebach, Y. (2025). Administrative Overload and Policy Triage: Causal Evidence from the Introduction of the Acid Rain Program in the United States. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. Link
Kaplaner, C., Knill, C., & Steinebach, Y. (2025). Policy Integration in the European Union: Mapping Patterns of Intersectoral Policy-Making over Time and across Policy Sectors. Journal of European Public Policy, 32(1), 26–51. Link
Kaplaner, C., & Steinebach, Y. (2024). Coping Practices and the Spatial Dimension of Authority Design. Public Administration Review, 84(1), 86–99. Link
Haag, M., Hurka, S., & Kaplaner, C. (2024). Policy Complexity and Implementation Performance in the European Union. Regulation & Governance. Link
Hurka, S., Haag, M., & Kaplaner, C. (2023). Proposal Complexity and Report Allocation in the European Parliament. European Union Politics, 24(2), 307–326. Link
Kaplaner, C., & Steinebach, Y. (2022). Why We Should Use the Gini Coefficient to Assess Punctuated Equilibrium Theory. Political Analysis, 30(3), 450–455. Link
Hurka, S., Haag, M., & Kaplaner, C. (2022). Policy Complexity in the European Union, 1993–Today: Introducing the EUPLEX Dataset. Journal of European Public Policy, 29(9), 1512–1527. Link
Bayerlein, L., Kaplaner, C., Knill, C., & Steinebach, Y. (2022). Singing Together or Apart? Comparing Policy Agenda Dynamics within International Organizations. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, 24(3), 210–229. Link
Hurka, S., & Kaplaner, C. (2020). Are Popular and Powerful Committees More Representative? Evidence from the Ninth European Parliament. Research & Politics, 7(2), 1–9. Link
Working papers
From Momentum to Meaning: Legislative Innovation and Impact in EU Policy Punctuations.
Complex Systems, Costly Change: How Functional Costs Shape Policy Punctuations.
Lobbying, Complexity, & Resources (available upon request), with Haag, M. & Hurka, S.
Navigating Crisis Perceptions and Functional Pressures in Migration Policy (R&R, available upon request), with Lenz, A., Millich, V., Steinbacher, C., Knill, C., Steinebach, Y., Fochler, C., & Kolbe, A.
Balancing Versatility and Precision: A Framework for Capturing Legislative Design Choices in Democratic Systems (R&R, available upon request), with Cowburn, M., Hurka, S., & Rueß, S.
Book chapters
Steinebach, Y., Knill, C., Kaplaner, C., & Bayerlein, L. (2022). Bureaucratic Agency and Policy Performance in International Organizations. In International Public Administrations in Global Public Policy: Sources and Effects of Bureaucratic Influence. Routledge.
Hurka, S., & Kaplaner, C. (2020). Präferenzverteilungen in den Ausschüssen des neu gewählten Europäischen Parlaments. In Die Europawahl 2019 (pp. 391–405). Springer VS.