Public values are being promoted as a core concept in the study of public administration, in particular, in discourses surrounding Moore’s public value management and Bozeman’s public value failure. ...This article outlines the approaches to the concept of values and public values. Particular attention is paid to the founding distinction between facts and values, which proves to be less clear than usually assumed. After discussing a range of possible characteristics of public values, an encompassing definition is attempted, which consequently has to accommodate opposing characteristics. It is concluded that the concept of public value is a fuzzy concept, and that is probably “as good as it gets.”
Public Values Jørgensen, Torben Beck; Rutgers, Mark R.
American review of public administration,
01/2015, Volume:
45, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
This article provides the introduction to a symposium on contemporary public values research. It is argued that the contribution to this symposium represent a Public Values Perspective, distinct from ...other specific lines of research that also use public value as a core concept. Public administration is approached in terms of processes guided or restricted by public values and as public value creating: public management and public policy-making are both concerned with establishing, following and realizing public values. To study public values a broad perspective is needed. The article suggest a research agenda for this encompasing kind of public values research. Finally the contributions to the symposium are introduced.
This article investigates the Confucian and Western traditions specifically with regard to the relation between morality, law and good administration. It is argued that the common opposition between ...the rule of man and the rule of law as reflecting the basic difference between the two traditions is inadequate. Confucianism can be better characterized positively as the rule of morality. It should also be noticed that ‘the rule of law’ is increasingly being introduced into the Chinese administration. Similarly, even though the Western tradition can be summarized in terms of the rule of law, it is acknowledged that ‘the rule of man’ cannot be avoided, and that morality is important. Both traditions oppose the rule of man, in as far as it refers to someone acting out his selfish preferences. It is concluded that good administration requires officials with both good morality and respect for the law; whether this is a kind of convergence is a matter of debate.
Points for practitioners
This article studies Confucian and Western administrative traditions in relation to the notion of good administration. It is argued that the common characterization and understanding of the Confucian tradition in terms of the Western reviled ‘rule of man’ is misguided. Rather than understanding the positive moral connotations of the Confucian good administrator it associates them with a specific negative notion; at the same time, overstressing the Western ‘rule of law’ may obscure the need for moral persons for good administration.
This article is primarily a study in the history of the concept of efficiency. It is argued that efficiency originated in Aristotelian ideas about causality and acquired a broad, substantive meaning ...of “moving force.” This meaning of the term was dominant well into 20th-century studies of public administration. In the course of the 20th century, however, efficiency became predominantly understood as “technical efficiency”: a ratio between resources and results. This connotation is especially clear in the explicit “textbook” definitions of efficiency. Nevertheless, we claim that the substantive meaning of efficiency is still around, and even at the heart of much criticism of efficiency. Technical efficiency obscures that efficiency in public administration is to be assessed in the light of public values. Efficiency as signifying the necessity of having capable operative administrative agents constitutes one of the, if not the, core value of the field.
This article aims to discuss the meaning of loyalty. Over the decades, authors have recognized loyalty ranging from an "ultimate value" to "immoral," depending on the consequences linked to its ...impact. Three types of loyalty are distinguished here, according to the cause or object of loyalty at which it is directed. When discussing loyalty, a crucial question is of loyal to what or whom. However, a multiplicity of possible loyalties is at play in administrative practice, particularly in different cultural contexts. This article argues that the core of loyalty for civil servants lies in principled loyalty: it is more than an obligation or commitment; it involves reference to a moral sense of "good."
The oath of office is perhaps the ultimate means to set public office apart: Public functionaries in most countries have to swear to let public interests prevail over private concerns. This seems at ...odds with the prevailing liberal/managerial idea that public and private employment is not distinct at all. The oath of office establishes a moral commitment to the office that transcends a contractual, managerial, and/or legal approach to public authority. It signifies the guardianship of public officers and links personal conscience with public values and public interests. This article concludes that we should guard against using an oath of office as a remedy against increased reliance on private interests and motivations; rather the latter may endanger a public service ethics and annul any meaning and function an oath may still represent to begin with.
In this article we study civil servants’ perceptions about the role of citizens in the provision of public services in Uganda. In other words, we examine the views of those who deliver civil services ...regarding the actual and desired influence of service recipients. An empirical study was conducted focusing on the health and education sectors in Uganda. It is concluded that due to a number of tensions regarding the role of the citizen in Uganda, civil servants feel that service recipients are not yet adequately engaged in the demand for and delivery of quality public services. More effective public service delivery in Uganda cannot be achieved without the development of a culture that supports the building of capacity at all levels, including the community and individual service recipients.
Points for practitioners
There are a number of contradictions in terms of the role of the citizen in Uganda that result in the inadequate engagement of service recipients in the demand for and delivery of quality public services. Aside from empowering service users to apply pressure for better services from the bottom up, it is also crucial to present public service providers with incentives to take up their responsibilities toward the public.
Will the Phoenix Fly Again? Rutgers, Mark R.
Review of social economy,
06/2013, Volume:
71, Issue:
2
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
What kind of phenomenon is a banker's oath? The oath is a warranty added to a promise, and has a complex nature and history that is discussed. Recent research on promising is presented that indicates ...that there may be a desired effect on both oath taker and on the audience, even if an oath is performed reluctantly or insincerely. Based on a comparison with the oath of office, it is argued that a banker's oath is not just a professional oath sworn to peers, but rather a political oath whereby one swears to the nation. Furthermore, the oath's long history indicates possible strengths and problems with the introduction of a banker's oath. It is concluded that the moral nature of an oath has to be taken into consideration, and that it is not just a tool to try and create trust.
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