In Defense of Bullshit: Administrative Utility of the Philosophically Ephemeral

Public Voices ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Staci M Zavattaro
Keyword(s):  
Public Administration ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Good Reason ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Authentic Participation ◽  
Negative Connotation

The word bullshit often has a negative connotation – and for good reason. Bullshit often is worse than lying given the stories and calculations involved. What if bullshit could be useful for public administration? Using a revised interpretation of bullshit, this article argues that public administrators and citizens might find the exercise useful when it comes to achieving authentic participation. Here, I bring together the revised version with King et al.’s authentic citizen participation to illustrate the utility of bullshit when it comes to idealistic, creative thinking.

scholarly journals From "Danwei" Society to New Community Building: Opportunities and Challenges for Citizen Participation in Chinese Cities

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaifeng Yang
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Community Building ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Administrative Process ◽  
The Public ◽  
New Community

Exploring the appropriate role of the public in public administration has been an active and ongoing area of inquiry and experimentation since the birth of the United States (King, Feltey and Susel 1998). Especially in last three decades, public administration has struggled to bring the public into the administrative process in the recognition that many programs cannot be effective without the collaboration between citizens and public administrators.

Training Administrators To Use Microcomputers

1985 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Robert H. Rittle
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Computer Literacy ◽  
City Management ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Public Administration Review ◽  
Management Association ◽  
University Training

Some are born to computer literacy, while others have literacy thrust upon them! Students who comprise the next generation of political scientists and public administrators will, in many cases, fall into the latter category. This article concerns the role of university training programs in meeting the increasing demands for microcomputer skills.The January, 1984 issue of Public Administration Review included five articles concerning microcomputers in local government. These articles anticipate “major changes in the way local governments organize and the means by which they carry out operations,” as a result of microcomputer technology. Predicting a significant impact of microcomputers in local government, the International City Management Association has also published a major monograph on microcomputer use (Griesemer, 1984).

MODERN MEANS AND MECHANISMS OF CIVIC ACTIVISM AND INITIATIVE IN SOCIETY

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-44
Author(s):  
Nurali Shodiev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civic Engagement ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Political Communication ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Civic Activism ◽  
Political Communications ◽  
Modern Methods ◽  
Methods And Techniques

The article examines the development trends of modern networks of political communication, the growing influence of social networks on the Internet on the civic engagement of citizens. At thesame time, the role of various blogs in expanding citizen participation in public administration is scientifically analyzed.The analysis ofsocial networks, blogs and various media resources used on the Internet as a platform and tool for civic initiatives and activity in society is carried out. The article also discusses modern methods and techniques for using political communications to increase civic engagement.

Web 2.0 Technologies and Authentic Public Participation

2014 ◽  
pp. 767-793
Author(s):  
Colleen Casey ◽  
Jianling Li
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Web 2.0 ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Web 2.0 Technology ◽  
Barriers To Implementation ◽  
Authentic Participation ◽  
Traditional Approaches

In this chapter, the authors evaluate the use of Web 2.0 technology to engage citizens in the transportation decision making process. They evaluate the potential of Web 2.0 technology to create effective participatory environments to enable authentic participation; provide an inventory of the current tools and technologies utilized, identify barriers faced by administrators in the implementation of these tools, and summarize universal lessons for public administrators. Based on a review of 40 cases of collaborations, the authors find that Web 2.0 technology is predominantly used as a complement rather than a substitute for traditional approaches. Furthermore, the review suggests that the full potential of Web 2.0 remains untapped, and additional tools and technologies can be utilized to overcome barriers to implementation.

Crowdsourcing in Local Public Administration

2019 ◽  
pp. 624-640 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kalsoom BeBe Sumra ◽  
Wang Bing
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Public Management ◽  
Online Community ◽  
User Participation ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Services Delivery ◽  
Online Platforms ◽  
Online Sources

Social networks have become very popular online sources of participation in crowdsourcing. This article examines the antecedents of user participation in crowdsourcing and importance of online community involvement in local public administration. Based on data collected from local public administrators and local public through survey, the results produce evidence that importance of online platforms in crowdsourcing can have a consistent impact on services delivery system in local public administration and importance of online open sources have significantly higher level in crowdsourcing on the whole, while importance of social media have significantly lower level overall. The paper contributes with potential implications and recommendations for local public management to achieve effective services delivery in developing countries through crowdsourced work. The present study is the first study that not only shows the effect of online platforms in local public administration, but also analyses the antecedents of crowdsourcing for participation (knowledge sharing, consultation, innovative ideation and reporting).

Public Administrators' Acceptance of the Practice of Digital Democracy

2008 ◽  
pp. 854-872
Author(s):  
Chan-Gon Kim ◽  
Marc Holzer
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Information Quality ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Perceived Usefulness ◽  
Public Administrators ◽  
Public Officials ◽  
Digital Democracy ◽  
Government Web Sites ◽  
System Characteristics

The Internet provides a new digital opportunity for realizing democracy in public administration, and this study raises a central question: What factors determine public officials’ acceptance of the practice of digital democracy on government Web sites? We focused on online policy forums among many practices of digital democracy. To gauge public officials’ behavioral intentions to use online policy forums on government Web sites, we examined individual and organizational factors, as well as system characteristics. We administered a survey questionnaire to Korean public officials and analyzed a total of 895 responses. Path analysis indicates that three causal variables are important in predicting public officials’ intentions to use online policy forums: perceived usefulness, attitudes toward citizen participation, and information quality. We discuss implications of this study for practices and theories of digital democracy.

Citizen Participation in Public Administration

2021 ◽  
pp. 72-93
Author(s):  
Veronika Linhartova
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Public Goods ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
New Concepts ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Decision Making Processes

The aim of the chapter is to evaluate the citizens involvement in contemporary public administration, especially in the Czech Republic. New concepts of governance and management of public sector organizations enable providing new or improved public goods and services that better meet consumer´s needs. These concepts also represent reformed or new approaches to governance with increased citizen participation. Public administration responds to dynamic changes in information and communication technologies and their maturity and uses them in the framework of e-government. Thanks to the implementation of e-government, citizens have become more knowledgeable, able to participate in decision-making processes, thus automatically becoming co-producers of public goods or services. This approach to public good and service delivery describes modern public sector management theories as co-creation. Although co-creation is an entirely new concept in some countries, various forms of public participation are becoming increasingly important worldwide and can be expected to continue in the future.

E-Participating Decision-Making Mechanism in the Public Administration System

2022 ◽  
pp. 214-235
Author(s):  
Konur Alp Demir
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Citizen Participation ◽  
Electronic Government ◽  
Management Model ◽  
Demand System ◽  
Flexible Structure ◽  
Administration System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Decision Making System

In this chapter, an analysis of the electronic decision making system, which is thought to benefit from the heavy bureaucratic system which does not take into account the expectations of the citizen in the public administration system, will be used to make a more flexible structure. The focus of this chapter is on the need to design the decision-making mechanisms of the state according to the expectations of the citizen. For this purpose, requests and complaints from the citizens through the electronic environment should be taken into consideration in the decision-making process. In fact, this situation is reflected in the application of electronic participation management model. The application of this management model in the public administration system is the citizen participation complaint and demand system which is carried out under the name of electronic government. The examination of this system, which is an example of the application of participatory democracy, is important for the reflection of democratic values on the administration system.

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