Reconciling the Varieties of Pragmatism in Public Administration

Abstract

Pragmatism has become a topic of growing discussion in public administration, as demonstrated by ongoing debate within the pages of Administration & Society. Karen Evans recently argued that the pervasive influence of logical positivism has produced a public administration, dominated by an ethically vacuous overemphasis on efficiency. Keith Snider recently responded to Evans by pointing toward confusion arising from debates between competing varieties of pragmatism, arguing that calls for pragmatism may produce unintended consequences under the present paradigm. However, this debate has the potential to produce a more intellectually experienced and mature public administration. Moreover, American pragmatism is uniquely appropriate as a philosophy of public administration in its dual academic/practitioner roles.