A View from the Trenches

Stolcis, Gregory B.

doi:10.1177/0095399704265326

Cited by 14 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 3 publications

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“…Across the 20th century, many figures in PA referenced pragmatism and pragmatists in their publications (Evans, 2000). In the early 2000s, a robust debate on the general applicability of Dewey's pragmatism to PA occurred (see Evans 2005;Hickman 2004;Hoch 2006;Miller 2004;Shields 2003;Stolcis 2004). 1 The debate covered many topics, from epistemology to pedagogy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Is The Public? A Pragmatic Analysis of a Core Concept in Public Administration

Whetsell

2023

Perspectives on Public Management and Governance

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The discipline of public administration has grappled with concepts regarding the public for well over a century. Scholars from public opinion, public choice, and public value(s) have analyzed myriad elements of administration related to the public. Scholars also have applied numerous concepts from philosophical pragmatism to public administration. However, detailed explorations of the fundamental concept of the public remain surprisingly sparse. The public remains eclipsed by administration. In this essay, I analyze the concept of the public focusing on the works of John Dewey. Viewed through this lens, publics emerge when social interaction generates unreglated effects on communities that respond by organizing collective or state action, a process which I refer to as the realization of the pragmatic public. I juxtapose the theory with multiple extant literature on public administration, including public choice, transaction costs, and public value(s). I identify consistencies and inconsistencies to provide a pluralistic yet coherent framework in the hope of revealing points of departure for future theory development. Finally, I reframe and extend the pragmatic public by applying the insights of contemporary scholarship in networks and complexity theory.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Is The Public? A Pragmatic Analysis of a Core Concept in Public Administration

Whetsell

2023

Perspectives on Public Management and Governance

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Jane Addams: Pioneer in American Sociology, Social Work and Public Administration

Shields

2017

Pioneers in Arts, Humanities, Science, Engineering, Practice

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Pragmatic localism uncovered: The search for locally contingent solutions to national reform agendas

Coaffee

Headlam

2008

Geoforum

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This paper analyses the complexity and attempted pragmatism of current practices surrounding the management of current local government policy reform in England. In particular, it focuses on the tensions and contradictions between a national policy dynamic which seeks to encourage locally contingent solutions to be developed for localised problems, and the centralising tendencies of the national state which result in 'blueprints' and 'models' being developed for local policy delivery and a requirement to meet centrally derived targets. These assumptions are explored through the experiences of local government attempts to introduce innovative and experimental praxis in line with the complex cultural and political changes of 'modernisation' agendas advanced by the UK government. This is being rolled out by an overarching project of 'new localism' -an attempt to devolve power and resources from the central state to front line local managers, sub-local structures and partnerships and to deliver 'what works'. It is argued that new attempts at subsidiarity should be more flexible to local conditions rather than directed by national policy and that greater discretion and freedom should be given to local managers to achieve this task. Using the concept of 'pragmatic localism' and grounded examples from a recent initiative -Local Area Agreements -it is highlighted that there are signs that local state management of national policy could be becoming increasingly adaptable, enabling managers to deal with the fluid nature of ongoing public policy reform, although this is far from a completed project with many factors still constraining this change process.

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A View from the Trenches

Cited by 14 publications

References 3 publications

What Is The Public? A Pragmatic Analysis of a Core Concept in Public Administration

What Is The Public? A Pragmatic Analysis of a Core Concept in Public Administration

Jane Addams: Pioneer in American Sociology, Social Work and Public Administration

Pragmatic localism uncovered: The search for locally contingent solutions to national reform agendas

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