Melbourne School of Government - Research Publications

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    The future of public administration research: An editor's perspective
    McDonald, BD ; Hall, JL ; O'Flynn, J ; Thiel, S (WILEY, 2022-03)
    Abstract Research in the field of public administration has changed and advanced significantly in recent years. These advancements concern both how we engage in research—such as the methods we apply, the interdisciplinary nature of the theories we use, and the research questions we ask. Increasingly, we are witnessing a shift in public‐sector values away from efficiency and effectiveness and toward a paradigm that highlights equity. In this article, we reflect on these changes from our position as editors‐in‐chief of some of the leading journals in the field. In addition to describing the progress of this discipline, we explore emerging windows of opportunity for new research. One such window is research on ways to incorporate interdisciplinary perspectives and methods. We also see the need for work in such areas as social equity, comparative administration, artificial intelligence, and climate change. Finally, we argue for a more proactive approach in disseminating research to those involved in the day‐to‐day decision‐making processes of public organizations.
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    Rising to Ostrom's challenge: an invitation to walk on the bright side of public governance and public service
    Douglas, S ; Schillemans, T ; 't Hart, P ; Ansell, C ; Bogh Andersen, L ; Flinders, M ; Head, B ; Moynihan, D ; Nabatchi, T ; O'Flynn, J ; Peters, BG ; Raadschelders, J ; Sancino, A ; Sorensen, E ; Torfing, J (TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2021-10-02)
    In this programmatic essay, we argue that public governance scholarship would benefit from developing a self-conscious and cohesive strand of "positive" scholarship, akin to social science subfields like positive psychology, positive organizational studies, and positive evaluation. We call for a program of research devoted to uncovering the factors and mechanisms that enable high performing public policies and public service delivery mechanisms; procedurally and distributively fair processes of tackling societal conflicts; and robust and resilient ways of coping with threats and risks. The core question driving positive public administration scholarship should be: Why is it that particular public policies, programs, organizations, networks, or partnerships manage do much better than others to produce widely valued societal outcomes, and how might knowledge of this be used to advance institutional learning from positives?
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    Back to the future: Reflections and predictions
    Althaus, C ; Dickinson, H ; Katsonis, M ; O'Flynn, J (WILEY, 2021-12)
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    Confronting the big challenges of our time: making a difference during and after COVID-19
    O'Flynn, J (ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2021-07-03)
    This article explores key challenges emanating from COVID-19 and how public management and administration research can contribute to addressing them. To do this I discuss the ‘big questions’ debate and then sketch two big thematic challenges. In articulating these, I point to interconnections across various levels of analysis and argue we need to work across a range of boundaries and get more comfortable with complexity. My key argument being that both during and in the aftermath of a catastrophic global pandemic, it is at the intersections, not in silos, that we are likely to move forward intellectually and practically.
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    Managing Expectations to Create High Performance Government
    Blackman, DA ; Buick, F ; O'Flynn, J ; O'Donnell, M ; West, D (SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC, 2019-06)
    Enhanced performance has been the focus of public administration and management research for years. High performance organizations have characteristics that differentiate them from others; they also utilize high performance work practices (HPWPs). A core HPWP is performance management, which seeks to align individual performance with organizational outcomes. We posit that performance management can enable high performance through managing employee expectations. Drawing on a study undertaken in the Australian Public Service, we demonstrate how using an expectancy theory lens helps explain how performance management can support high performance. We suggest that all three elements of expectancy theory—valance, expectancy, and instrumentality—need to be in place to support the creation of goal and role clarity, critical components of high performance. This offers practitioners a way of structuring effective conversations and scholars the opportunity to consider the theoretical implications of linking expectancy theories, performance management, and high performance.
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    From Headline to Hard Grind: The Importance of Understanding Public Administration in Achieving Health Outcomes Comment on "Understanding the Role of Public Administration in Implementing Action on the Social Determinants of Health and Health Inequities"
    O'Flynn, J (KERMAN UNIV MEDICAL SCIENCES, 2016-07)
    Many public policy programs fail to translate ambitious headlines to on-the-ground action. The reasons for this are many and varied, but for public administration and management scholars a large part of the gap between ambition and achievement is the challenge associated with the operation of the machinery of government itself, and how it relates to the other parties that it relies on to fulfill these outcomes. In their article, Carey and Friel set out key reasons why public health scholars should seek to better understand important ideas in public administration. In commenting on their contribution, I draw out two critical questions that are raised by this discussion: (i) what are boundaries and what forms do they take? and (ii) why work across boundaries? Expanding on these key questions extends the points made by Carey and Friel on the importance of understanding public administration and will better place public health scholars and practitioners to realise health outcomes.