The thesis of this chapter is that the influence of experts on policy change should be analyzed in terms of the relationship between the field of discourse, on the one hand, and the positions and strategies of experts, on the other. For the comparative case study presented here, I have argued that there are specific linkages between field and actor in the American and German family debates that are related to the adversarial and inquisitorial models. This explains the differences in family-policy change in the two countries to the degree that the respective combinations of field characteristics and types of experts favor a certain family style. Finally, I have demonstrated how this theoretical idea could be empirically proven by studying different arenas of expert influence (society, public discourse, interaction) and their interrelationships.Is it possible to generalize the approach or the theory? I will address a few points worth considering. First, I will ask whether a general definition of the expert can be derived from this case study. Second, I will discuss the general implications of the discourse models, inquisitorial and adversarial. Finally, I will ask whether this case study is significant for the sociology of the "knowledge society."