Michiel S. de Vries - Böcker

De Vries argues that it is possible to explain when and in what direction policy change is likely to occur. He argues that what is neglected at present is likely to become dominant in policies of the near future. With the birth of a new policy generation a convergence towards meeting the dominant value of that generation will become evident.

Public administration – the practice of producing and executing government policy by bureaucrats, politicians, managers and other officials – affects almost everything we encounter in our day-to-day lives. Public administrators are – at least partially – responsible for the amount of hours we work, the quality of the air we breathe, the ease with which we can visit the doctor and the state of the roads we walk and drive down. Despite the widespread relevance of public administration however, the relative amount of government influence on society differs across the world. This major new introduction examines public administration structures, processes and achievements, and the behavior and motivations of the administrators themselves. Internationally relevant and analyzing states at a range of different developmental stages, it examines the key themes and issues that dominate the field. Chapters are framed around a series of questions that determine the typical and the unusual features of governments. For example, focus is given to what makes for a stable government, the different definitions of management, possible solutions to corruption, the relationship between central and local governments as well as the formal strategies for policy development. The book draws extensively on core theory in the field, and makes critical links between public administration and economics, law, sociology and the wider subject of political science. As accessible for students as it is useful for practitioners looking for a comprehensive reference guide, this is an essential text for those who wish to understand the complexities of government and public administration from the inside out.

Public administration – the practice of producing and executing government policy by bureaucrats, politicians, managers and other officials – affects almost everything we encounter in our day-to-day lives. Public administrators are – at least partially – responsible for the amount of hours we work, the quality of the air we breathe, the ease with which we can visit the doctor and the state of the roads we walk and drive down. Despite the widespread relevance of public administration however, the relative amount of government influence on society differs across the world. This major new introduction examines public administration structures, processes and achievements, and the behavior and motivations of the administrators themselves. Internationally relevant and analyzing states at a range of different developmental stages, it examines the key themes and issues that dominate the field. Chapters are framed around a series of questions that determine the typical and the unusual features of governments. For example, focus is given to what makes for a stable government, the different definitions of management, possible solutions to corruption, the relationship between central and local governments as well as the formal strategies for policy development. The book draws extensively on core theory in the field, and makes critical links between public administration and economics, law, sociology and the wider subject of political science. As accessible for students as it is useful for practitioners looking for a comprehensive reference guide, this is an essential text for those who wish to understand the complexities of government and public administration from the inside out.

This is a book about making choices based on the evaluation of alternatives. This book discusses the major problems in evaluating courses of action and examines the political contexts in which decisions are made. The subject matter of this book is at the crossroads of policy and research methodology.

De Vries argues that it is possible to explain when and in what direction policy change is likely to occur. He argues that what is neglected at present is likely to become dominant in policies of the near future. With the birth of a new policy generation a convergence towards meeting the dominant value of that generation will become evident.

This book provides a comparative analysis of performance budgeting and financing implementation, and examines failures and successes across both developed and developing countries. Each chapter provides historical and descriptive details of successful or failed experiments in performance budgeting and performance financing.

This book analyses the participatory budgeting practice as it has evolved in evaluated countries, focusing on what is substantially at stake concerning the budget and issues involved, the actual participation, the way such processes are organised and administered, and the outcomes of such processes.

This book analyses the participatory budgeting practice as it has evolved in evaluated countries, focusing on what is substantially at stake concerning the budget and issues involved, the actual participation, the way such processes are organised and administered, and the outcomes of such processes.