A Coherent Framework for the Study of Public Administration

Abstract

The identity crisis of public administration, discussed on both sides of the Atlantic since the Second World War, is a debate about both its academic stature and its relevance to society. American students of Public Administration, who are rooted in a practical approach, have time and again addressed this issue by stating the need for a comprehensive theory that would unify the study. Some even have suggested ways to achieve that happy state of coherence and unification through either pointing to the accumulative quality of research (e.g., “from miniparadigms to”) or advocating for a central demarcating concept (e.g., “association”). The American approach to the identity crisis, which is generally inductive, stands in sharp contrast to the continental-European approach, which is generally deductive. Can we be content with the fact that public administration is essentially multidisciplinary and maybe interdisciplinary, or should we continue to strive for a comprehensive theory? This article is intended to fuel the ongoing discussion about the identity crisis; it presents a metatheoretical solution that transcends practical, deductive approach as well as inductive approaches.