Suchergebnisse

The more links can be observed in the vertical line between intentions and results as embodied by a policy process, the smaller the chance will be of a congruent implementation of the public policy concerned. Pressman and Wildavsky (1973) expressed this view on implementation in one of the longest and most famous subtitles in the study of public administration. In this article this view is addressed as the thesis of incongruent implementation. Although still common with policy makers, since Bowen's (1982) critique it hardly has been investigated further. At the same time, however, scholars across different research communities have started to explore the effects of intermediary variables between government intentions and governmental performance. The objective in this article is to look at what is known about the impact of such variables currently and to explore the implications for the study of implementation.

Es werden verschiedene analytische Ansätze niederländischer Politikwissenschaftler und Soziologen zur Erklärung des niederländischen Wohlfahrtsstaates bzw. des "Vorzeigestaates" referiert und die Besonderheiten des gesellschaftlichen und politischen Systems der Niederlande, seine historischen Wurzeln sowie verschiedene wisssenschaftliche Interpretationen seiner aktuellen Probleme erörtert. (AuD-Pls)

"Die vorherrschende Meinung über Dezentralisierungspolitik in den Niederlanden ist, daß diese Politik stagniert. Andererseits wird eine Wiederbelebung und eine zunehmende Bedeutung der Lokalregierung und der dezentralisierten Verwaltung in den frühen 1990er Jahren gesehen. Beobachter, die eine Stagnation der Dezentralisierungspolitik erkennen, fordern oft mehr lokale Autonomie. Autonomie kennzeichnet eines der formalen Prinzipien, die im niederländischen System der wechselseitigen Regierungsbeziehungen (intergovernmental relations) niedergelegt sind. Ein weiteres wichtiges Prinzip ist das von der Idee der Selbstverwaltung abgeleitete Prinzip der medebewind (wörtlich: Co-Herrschaft). Eine nähere Betrachtung der Konzeption des niederländischen dezentralisierten Einheitsstaats führt zu einer Neubewertung der Prinzipien von Co-Herrschaft und Autonomie. Die Konsequenz ist eine andere Diagnose der Situation, in der sich die Dezentralisierung in den Niederlanden befindet. Außerdem können verschiedene Lehren für eine Dezentralisierungspolitik gezogen werden." (Autorenreferat)

The prevailing view on decentralisation policy in Western European countries like the Netherlands is that it is stagnating. People who see this stagnation as a problem ask what can be done about it. It appears that from the literature on policy implementation insights and lessons can be drawn that can be applied to the organisation of the administrative system. Application of these insights assumes a reality that is less one-sidedly hierarchical and centralistic than the prevailing view on decentralisation might suggest. On the basis of that application suggestions are made regarding the way decentralisation policy can be given a new impulse. One of these suggestions concerns the use of financial cutbacks, and the associated reductions in personnel, at the departmental level, as an opportunity to strengthen the role of the provinces and municipalities. In this respect the Ministry of the Interior, formally responsible for the implementation of the government's policy on decentralisation, could play a role of intermediary instead of central ruler, guiding and stimulating decentralisation.

Suggestions from the literature on policy implementation, especially from the bottom-up perspective.

Implementation occurs as a 'late' part in the stages model of the policy process. As such, it is seen as following upon and subordinate to the preceding stages of agenda-setting and policy formation. Hence, implementation is often addressed as 'the rest'. This view on implementation as a presupposed residual in goal achievement implies little attention to 'political' dimensions, like ambiguity and conflict. Therefore, the view can only partially explain the – sometimes disappointing – results of policy processes. Alternatively, approaches to the policy/implementation nexus with an explicit focus on what happens at the street level have a greater explanatory potential. They are not taking implementation for granted as a seemingly technical matter, simply prescribed by policy objectives.

This wide-ranging edited volume provides a state of the art account of theory and research on modern street-level bureaucracy, gathering internationally acclaimed scholars to address the varying roles of public officials who fulfill their tasks while interacting with the public. These roles include the delivery of benefits and services, the regulation of social and economic behavior, and the expression and maintenance of public values. Questions about the extent of discretionary autonomy and the feasibility of hierarchical control are discussed in depth, with suggestions made for the further development of research in this field. Hence the book fills an important gap in the literature on public policy delivery, making it a valuable text for students and researchers of public policy, public administration and public management

This wide-ranging edited volume provides a state of the art account of theory and research on modern street-level bureaucracy, gathering internationally acclaimed scholars to address the varying roles of public officials who fulfill their tasks while interacting with the public. These roles include the delivery of benefits and services, the regulation of social and economic behavior, and the expression and maintenance of public values. Questions about the extent of discretionary autonomy and the feasibility of hierarchical control are discussed in depth, with suggestions made for the further development of research in this field. Hence the book fills an important gap in the literature on public policy delivery, making it a valuable text for students and researchers of public policy, public administration and public management.