Market-based public management reform has introduced customer choice among competing providers of public services. Choice entails exit, an option which Albert Hirschman famously reserved for the market, while voice is the key mode of communication in political life. Based on elite and mass surveys, the article studies how exit is perceived by citizens and local political and administrative leaders in Norway and Sweden, and how the two strategic options relate to each other. Citizens are more positive towards customer choice and exit than are leaders, albeit with some variation across different public service sectors. Political and administrative leaders are positive towards customer choice models as a strategy to empower clients but more critical in terms of the potential loss of accountability and control that contracting out services may entail.
EXIT, VOICE, AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF LOCAL DEMOCRACYThe strategies available to citizens and clients of public services to influence political and administrative choice have proliferated over the past couple of decades. Most importantly, clients -or customers -of public services are increasingly often offered a choice among competing service providers. Thus, in service sectors like primary education, care of the elderly, daycare for preschool children and even the annual safety control of automobiles, clients in many European countries are now provided with choice in a competitive market with a wide range of public, private and cooperative service producers (Blomqvist 2004; see also Klitgaard 2007).This reform has altered not just public service delivery but also the strategies available to citizens to influence local service and, indeed, the democratic discourse and practice of the local state. Previously, applying 'exit' in Hirschman's classic framework to local politics essentially meant moving to another municipality (Friedman 1955;Hirschman 1970). The steep costs associated with that type of exit behaviour were probably an effective deterrent even to the most disenchanted clients. However, with customer choice now in place in a large number of service areas in many countries, the exit option has become a much more realistic and less costly strategic alternative for clients.This article investigates the conceptual and theoretical relationship between 'exit' and 'voice' in public service delivery. Drawing on a unique survey among local senior politicians, managers and citizens in Norway and Sweden we find that there is a positive relationship among citizens between 'exit' and 'voice' as means of influencing public service. Politicians and public managers are less positive towards the introduction of 'exit' than are the citizens.The next section of the article explores the conceptual and theoretical aspects of these issues. We then introduce our research design and discuss our key results. A concluding section closes the article.Interestingly, Hirschman saw exit first and foremost as associated with the market whereas voice as a strategy of articulating a complaint...