Abstract: Historical institutional theory,with its multi-level analytical framework integrating "macro-structure,middle-level institutions and micro-actor",provides a theoretical perspective for interpreting the evolution,logic and implications of the institutional change in the Communist Party of China's investigation and research.Connected by "critical junctures",the institution of investigation and research of the Communist Party of China can be divided into five historical stages:initiation,formation,expansion,revitalization and innovation,each with distinct stage-specific characteristics in institutional objectives,institutional tools and institutional effects.Once triggered by "critical junctures",problems in the institution of investigation and research enter the institutional field as signals of institutional change.Such signals bring about discontinuous institutional change by reshaping the overall institutional objectives;then,institutional tools and their arrangements take new forms through adaptive adjustment,the institution demonstrates new effects and returns to a balanced development paradigm.The evolution of this institution embodies a compound change logic of "structure-history-action".The structural logic of macro-institutional context variables,the historical logic of path-dependent self-reinforcement,and the behavioral logic of rational choice by institutional subjects are closely superimposed,interwoven and interactive,driving the institutional change of the Communist Party of China's investigation and research with a combined force of spatial,temporal and subjective factors.To further activate this driving force,efforts should be made to remove obstacles to institutional development through upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground,adhere to the people-centered logic by following the mass line,and regulate the orientation of actors through institutional development,so as to promote the sound evolution and continuous optimization of the institution of investigation and research.

Key words: investigation and research, historical institutional theory, institutionalchange, the Communist Party of China