Public Managers as the Missing Variable in Policy Studies: An Empirical Investigation Using Canadian Data

Howlett, Michael

doi:10.1111/j.1541-1338.2011.00494.x

Cited by 59 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…More recently, drawing on a large‐N survey of Canadian policy workers, Howlett (2011) argued that policy managers, while sharing many of the same characteristics and activities as other professional analysts, have some unique and significant differences with their analytical counterparts that qualifies them for more detailed study. These included variations in socioeconomic and demographic characteristics with policy managers being more likely to be male, slightly older, and more experienced than analysts but slightly less well educated.…”

Section: Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public Managers in the Policy Process: More Evidence on the Missing Variable?

Howlett

Walker

2012

Policy Studies Journal

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Questions have been posed about the lack of knowledge of the role public managers play in the policy process. In this study, following on the suggestions of Hicklin and Godwin and Meier in this journal, we identify different dimensions of the analyst–manager divide among professional policy workers. Using the results of several recent large‐N surveys of Canadian federal, provincial, and territorial policy workers, we explore the roles each group plays in the policy analytical process and the variations in their behavior in terms of duties and tasks, attitudes, and interrelationships. We also examine these to see the impact of federalism on professional policy practices. The study uncovers three groups of policy workers and policy managers—coordinator‐planners, research‐analysts, and director‐managers. Differences between groups of policy workers are found for their policy‐related work and their perceptions of tools of policy effectiveness, and differences between levels of government are identified for issues of time demands and coordination and tools of policy effectiveness. The implications of these findings for the study of public managers in the policy process are considered in conclusion.

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Section: Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public Managers in the Policy Process: More Evidence on the Missing Variable?

Howlett

Walker

2012

Policy Studies Journal

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“…Their examination was addressed by Colebatch et al (2010), Evans et al (2011), Evans & Wellstead (2013 and Howlett (2009Howlett ( , 2011. In the Czech Republic (and also in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe), this problem is currently being neglected.…”

Section: Results Of Examining the Debate The Genesis Of Strategic Govmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preserving fertility in pseudomyxoma peritonei, a novel approach

Sheehan

Mehta

Sawan

et al. 2017

Pleura and Peritoneum

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“…Many authors see this dichotomy between strategic decision and operational activities as a weak point of public policy analysis, first because it is very difficult to categorize what is technical and what is political. Second, due to the failure to empirically observe how decisions that come from political actors are incorporated and transformed by the bureaucrats (HOWLETT, 2011;DEMIR and REDDICK, 2012). The advance of the literature depends, therefore, on deepening the analysis of these different dimensions regarding the bureaucrats' daily work.…”

Section: Further Research On Mid-level Bureaucracymentioning

confidence: 99%

The mid-level bureaucrats’ performance: determinants of their activities and work relationships

Cavalcante

Lotta

Yamada³

2018

Cad. EBAPE.BR

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Although scholars have been investigating bureaucrats for a long time, mid-level bureaucrats (MLB) have been far less studied in the literature. To fill this gap, this article explores MLBs heterogeneity regarding their profile, professional background and, above all, performance. The main goal is to investigate the determinants of bureaucrats' performance, depicted by two crucial dimensions: the degree of MLBs relationship within public bureaucracy and complexity level of their activities. These skills are valued today with increasing importance in contexts of network governance and bureaucratic responsiveness. First, a descriptive analysis was undertaken of survey data collected in 2014 from federal mid-level bureaucrats in positions filled by appointment. This was followed by formulating synthetic indexes of two dimensions: bureaucrats' activities and their work relationships. Subsequently, multivariate models were employed to explain the determinants of these dimensions. Empirical results show that the mid-level bureaucrats' performance is both affected by the government's structure factors as well as by their own individual characteristics. However, the variables effects vary considerably. The empirical evidence suggests that MLBs tend to be more connected and perform more activities as they hold higher positions filled by appointment, have a higher level of education and capacity to influence decision processes and work directly with policymaking, especially in social policy.Keywords: Public Administration. Mid-level bureaucracy. Federal Government. Brazil. O desempenho dos burocratas de médio escalão: determinantes do relacionamento e das suas atividades ResumoEmbora os pesquisadores venham estudando a burocracia há bastante tempo, os burocratas de médio escalão (BME) recebem menos atenção da literatura. Para preencher essa lacuna, o artigo explora a questão da heterogeneidade dos BME em relação ao seu perfil, sua experiência profissional e, principalmente, seu desempenho. O principal objetivo é investigar os determinantes do desempenho dos BME a partir de duas dimensões: o nível de relacionamento dos BME e o nível de complexidade de suas atividades. Essas dimensões são muito valorizadas atualmente, considerando o crescimento da sua importância em contextos de governança em rede e accountability burocrática. Primeiro, realizamos uma análise descritiva dos dados coletados em 2014 junto a servidores federais que ocupavam cargos comissionados. Para tanto, elaboramos índices sintéticos das duas dimensões: relacionamento e atividades da burocracia. Posteriormente, empregamos modelos de análise multivariados para explicar seus determinantes. Os resultados empíricos mostram que o desempenho dos burocratas de médio escalão é afetado tanto por fatores estruturais do governo, como também por suas próprias características individuais. No entanto, os efeitos das variáveis mudam consideravelmente. As evidências empíricas sugerem que os BME mais conectados e que realizam mais atividades são aqueles que ocupam c...

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Public Managers as the Missing Variable in Policy Studies: An Empirical Investigation Using Canadian Data

Cited by 59 publications

References 52 publications

Public Managers in the Policy Process: More Evidence on the Missing Variable?

Public Managers in the Policy Process: More Evidence on the Missing Variable?

Preserving fertility in pseudomyxoma peritonei, a novel approach

The mid-level bureaucrats’ performance: determinants of their activities and work relationships

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