Institutionalism gives priority to structure over agency. Yet institutions have never developed and operated without the intervention of interested groups. This paper develops a conceptual framework for the role of agency in historical institutionalism. Based on recent contributions following the coalitional turn and drawing on insights from sociological institutionalism, it argues that agency plays a key role in the creation and maintenance of social coalitions that stabilize but also challenge institutions. Without such agency, no coalition can be created, maintained, or changed. Similarly, without a supporting coalition, no contested institution can survive. Yet, due to collective action problems, such coalitional work is challenging. This coalitional perspective offers a robust role for agency in historical institutionalism, but it also explains why institutions remain stable despite agency. In addition, this paper forwards several portable propositions that allow for the identification of who is likely to develop agency and what these actors do.

制度主义优先于结构而非代理。然而，没有感兴趣的团体的干预，机构就从未发展和运作。本文为历史制度主义中代理的作用建立了一个概念框架。基于联盟转向之后的最新贡献并借鉴了社会学制度主义的见解，它认为代理机构在建立和维持稳定但又挑战机构的社会联盟中发挥着关键作用。没有这种代理机构，就无法创建，维护或更改联盟。同样，没有支持的联盟，任何有争议的机构都无法生存。然而，由于集体行动问题，这种联合工作具有挑战性。这种联盟观点为代理机构在历史制度主义中发挥了重要作用，但这也解释了为什么尽管有代理机构，机构仍然保持稳定。此外，本文还提出了几个可移植的命题，这些命题可以确定谁可能发展代理以及这些行为者的行为。