Public Values

Abstract

Exploring boundaries and meanings of public value, the authors seek to identify some of the impediments to progress in the study of public values. The study of public values is often hamstrung by more general problems in the study of values. The authors begin by identifying analytical problems in the study of values and public values. Then they take stock of the public values universe. To identify public value concepts, relevant literature is reviewed and interpreted. Finally, the analytical questions posed in the first section are addressed, focusing specifically on issues related to the hierarchy, causality, and proximity of public values.

Without Blinders: Public Values Scholarship in Political Science, Economics, and Law—Content and Contribution to Public Administration

“…Most of the specific PVs mentioned in political science, with the exception of democracy, are absent from the "Inventory" by Jørgensen and Bozeman (2007), which is oft-cited in PA. The values mentioned-cultural diversity, liberal thought, freedom of speech, security, law and order, and national unity-are considered important policy goals/outcomes in a polity; they are not so much process values of public governance.…”

“…Jørgensen & Bozeman, 2007), that is, of qualitatively distinguishing various research clusters and maybe even schools of thought, the aim of this article is to better position PA scholars to interact more meaningfully with their peers in cognate disciplines. At the very least, the analysis will help the study of PVs to progress by shedding light on how scholars in disciplines that engage in substantive PVs scholarship use the concept, and how and where approaches differ and overlap.…”

Drawing the Line: On the Public/Private Distinction in Debates on New Modes of Governance

“…Some studies are straightforwardly prescriptive: they provide a more or less defined notion of publicness and argue for protective measures for such publicness (e.g., Denhardt & Denhardt, 2007;. Others are more reluctant to take sides and try to pinpoint typical public (as distinguished from private) values, virtues, or concerns (e.g., Beck-Jørgensen & Bozeman, 2006;Bozeman, 2007;Perry & Hondeghem, 2008).…”

“…3 Others, however, opt for a more empirical approach. They build their lists on, for instance, questionnaires asking employees from the public or private sector to select the rules, virtues, and values that they find most appropriate for their field of work (e.g., Beck-Jørgensen & Bozeman, 2006). These studies provide valuable insights, but they also have their downsides.…”

“…Within public administration studies, the effects of NPM measures are also presented as threats to public values or as leading to a diminishing publicness and an erosion of the public/private distinction (Bozeman, 2002;Denhardt & Denhardt, 2007;. Moreover, these evaluations have generated an abundance of studies of public values, public value management, public service motivation, and public virtues (Alford & Hughes, 2008;Beck-Jørgensen & Bozeman, 2006;Moore, 1995;Perry & Hondeghem, 2008;Pesch, 2005;Stoker, 2006). The issues of publicness and the public/private distinction are surely back in the spotlight.…”