Is there empirical evidence of a trend towards "managerialism"? A longitudinal study of six countries

Canadian Public Administration

Volumn 39, Issue 4, 1996, Pages 535-553

  Carroll, Barbara Wake ^a   Garkut, David E ^b  

^a MCMASTER UNIVERSITY   (Canada)

^b UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO   (Canada)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 0039169227     PISSN: 00084840     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1754-7121.1996.tb00149.x     Document Type: Article

References (73)

1. 1 Michael Pusey, Economic Rationalism in Canberra (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991), pp. 121-2.
2. See Peter Aucoin, The New Public Management: Canada in Comparative Perspective (Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1995); and G. Bruce Doern, The Road to Better Public Services: Progress and Constraints in Five Canadian Federal Agencies (Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1995).
3. See Peter Aucoin, The New Public Management: Canada in Comparative Perspective (Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1995); and G. Bruce Doern, The Road to Better Public Services: Progress and Constraints in Five Canadian Federal Agencies (Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy, 1995).
4. Aucoin, New Public Management, p. 65.
5. See Sandford Borins, "The new public management is here to stay," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 122-32; Donald J. Savoie, "What is wrong with the new public management?" CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 112-21; and James Q. Wilson, "Reinventing Public Administration," Political Science 27, no. 4 (December 1994), pp. 667-73.
6. See Sandford Borins, "The new public management is here to stay," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 122-32; Donald J. Savoie, "What is wrong with the new public management?" CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 112-21; and James Q. Wilson, "Reinventing Public Administration," Political Science 27, no. 4 (December 1994), pp. 667-73.
7. See Sandford Borins, "The new public management is here to stay," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 122-32; Donald J. Savoie, "What is wrong with the new public management?" CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 38, no. 1 (Spring 1995), pp. 112-21; and James Q. Wilson, "Reinventing Public Administration," Political Science 27, no. 4 (December 1994), pp. 667-73.
8. See Canada, Coordinating Committee of Deputy Ministers Policy, "Strengthening Our Policy Capacity," Report of the Task Force on Strengthening the Policy Capacity of the Federal Government (Ottawa: Committee, 1995) [mimeo]; and
9. Kenneth Kernaghan, "Editorial Introduction to a Symposium on Career Public Service and Administrative Reform," International Review of Administrative Sciences 57, no. 3 (September 1991), pp. 323-6. J.E. Everett, B.W. Sterling and P.A. Lonton, " Some Evidence for an International Management Culture," Journal of Management Studies 19, no. 2 (1982), pp. 153-62.
10. Kenneth Kernaghan, "Editorial Introduction to a Symposium on Career Public Service and Administrative Reform," International Review of Administrative Sciences 57, no. 3 (September 1991), pp. 323-6. J.E. Everett, B.W. Sterling and P.A. Lonton, " Some Evidence for an International Management Culture," Journal of Management Studies 19, no. 2 (1982), pp. 153-62.
11. Pusey, Economic Rationalism in Canberra, p. 121.
12. Donald Savoie, Thatcher, Reagan, Mulroney: In Search of a New Bureaucracy (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1993), pp. 28-32.
13. Aucoin, New Public Management, p. 167.
14. Barbara Wake Carroll, "Politics and Administration: A Trichotomy?" Governance 3, no. 4 (October 1990), pp. 345-66.
15. See Pusey, Economic Rationalism in Canberra; and Barbara Wake Carroll, "The structure of the Canadian bureaucratic elite: some evidence of change," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 34, no. 2 (Summer 1991), pp. 359-72.
16. See Pusey, Economic Rationalism in Canberra; and Barbara Wake Carroll, "The structure of the Canadian bureaucratic elite: some evidence of change," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 34, no. 2 (Summer 1991), pp. 359-72.
17. This research is part of a larger study about patterns of resource allocation in the same countries. The departments were chosen as part of the design of the larger study.
18. See Colin Campbell, Governments Under Stress (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1983); and Edward C. Page, Political Authority and Bureaucratic Power (Brighton, U.K.: Wheatsheaf Books, 1985).
19. See Colin Campbell, Governments Under Stress (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1983); and Edward C. Page, Political Authority and Bureaucratic Power (Brighton, U.K.: Wheatsheaf Books, 1985).
20. Janet M. Martin, "An Examination of Executive Branch Appointments in the Reagan Administration by Background and Gender," Western Political Quarterly 44, no. 1 (March 1991), pp. 173-84.
21. See John Child, "Organizational Structure, Environment and Performance: The Role of Strategic Choice," Sociology 7, no. 1 (Spring 1972), pp. 1-22; Michael Lawriwsky, Corporate Structure and Performance: The Role of Owners, Managers and Markets (London: Croom-Helm, 1984), Chapter 1; and James D. Thompson, Organizations in Action (Toronto: McGraw-Hill, 1967), Chapter 9.
22. See John Child, "Organizational Structure, Environment and Performance: The Role of Strategic Choice," Sociology 7, no. 1 (Spring 1972), pp. 1-22; Michael Lawriwsky, Corporate Structure and Performance: The Role of Owners, Managers and Markets (London: Croom-Helm, 1984), Chapter 1; and James D. Thompson, Organizations in Action (Toronto: McGraw-Hill, 1967), Chapter 9.
23. See John Child, "Organizational Structure, Environment and Performance: The Role of Strategic Choice," Sociology 7, no. 1 (Spring 1972), pp. 1-22; Michael Lawriwsky, Corporate Structure and Performance: The Role of Owners, Managers and Markets (London: Croom-Helm, 1984), Chapter 1; and James D. Thompson, Organizations in Action (Toronto: McGraw-Hill, 1967), Chapter 9.
24. Aucoin, New Public Management, p. 2, 13-15.
25. Representative pieces from the literature on organizations include Frederick Harbison and Charles A. Myers, Management in the Industrial World: An International Analysis (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959); and Marc Maurice, "Universality and Specificity in Organizational Research," in Cornelis J. Lammers and David J. Hickson, eds., Organizations Alike and Unlike: International and Inter-Institutional Studies in the Sociology of Organizations (London: Routledge, 1981). Representative pieces from the public-policy literature include George Hoberg, "Technology; Political Structures and Social Regulation: A Cross-National Analysis," Comparative Politics 18 (March 1986), pp. 357-76; and David Vogel, National Styles of Regulation: Environmental Policy in Great Britain and the United States (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1986).
26. Representative pieces from the literature on organizations include Frederick Harbison and Charles A. Myers, Management in the Industrial World: An International Analysis (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959); and Marc Maurice, "Universality and Specificity in Organizational Research," in Cornelis J. Lammers and David J. Hickson, eds., Organizations Alike and Unlike: International and Inter-Institutional Studies in the Sociology of Organizations (London: Routledge, 1981). Representative pieces from the public-policy literature include George Hoberg, "Technology; Political Structures and Social Regulation: A Cross-National Analysis," Comparative Politics 18 (March 1986), pp. 357-76; and David Vogel, National Styles of Regulation: Environmental Policy in Great Britain and the United States (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1986).
27. Representative pieces from the literature on organizations include Frederick Harbison and Charles A. Myers, Management in the Industrial World: An International Analysis (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959); and Marc Maurice, "Universality and Specificity in Organizational Research," in Cornelis J. Lammers and David J. Hickson, eds., Organizations Alike and Unlike: International and Inter-Institutional Studies in the Sociology of Organizations (London: Routledge, 1981). Representative pieces from the public-policy literature include George Hoberg, "Technology; Political Structures and Social Regulation: A Cross-National Analysis," Comparative Politics 18 (March 1986), pp. 357-76; and David Vogel, National Styles of Regulation: Environmental Policy in Great Britain and the United States (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1986).
28. Representative pieces from the literature on organizations include Frederick Harbison and Charles A. Myers, Management in the Industrial World: An International Analysis (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1959); and Marc Maurice, "Universality and Specificity in Organizational Research," in Cornelis J. Lammers and David J. Hickson, eds., Organizations Alike and Unlike: International and Inter-Institutional Studies in the Sociology of Organizations (London: Routledge, 1981). Representative pieces from the public-policy literature include George Hoberg, "Technology; Political Structures and Social Regulation: A Cross-National Analysis," Comparative Politics 18 (March 1986), pp. 357-76; and David Vogel, National Styles of Regulation: Environmental Policy in Great Britain and the United States (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1986).
29. The departments included from the United Kingdom were Defence, Foreign and Common-wealth Office, Environment; Agriculture Fisheries and Food, and Treasury; for the United States: Agriculture, Treasury, Defense, State, Housing and Urban Development, and the Environmental Protection Agency; from Canada: National Defence, Environment, Finance, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Agriculture, and External Affairs; from New Zealand: Defence, External Relations and Trade, Environment, Treasury, Agriculture, and the Housing Corporation of New Zealand; from Australia: Arts, Sports, Environment, Tourism and Territories, Defence, Finance, Foreign Affairs and Trade, Primary Industry and Energy, and Urban and Regional Development (Australia does have a Department of Finance but it deals with internal government finance similar to the Treasury Board in Canada); from Mauritius: Prime Minister's Office (Police), Housing, Land and Town and Country Planning (later, Housing and Land Use and Environment), Agriculture, Finance, and External Affairs. Mauritius does not have an army, but it does have a large national police force that includes a special mobile force, which wears military uniforms, has military ranks and receives military training.
30. See Patrick Dunleavy, "The Architecture of the British Central State. Part II. Empirical Findings," Public Administration 67 (Autumn 1989), pp. 391-417; and Patrick Weller, "Politicisation and the Australian Public Service," Australian Journal of Public Administration 48, no. 3 (September 1989), pp. 369-84.
31. See Patrick Dunleavy, "The Architecture of the British Central State. Part II. Empirical Findings," Public Administration 67 (Autumn 1989), pp. 391-417; and Patrick Weller, "Politicisation and the Australian Public Service," Australian Journal of Public Administration 48, no. 3 (September 1989), pp. 369-84.
32. Dunleavy's classification does not include foreign affairs because he is interested in domestic expenditure patterns. The departments do not quite fit so neatly into these classifications in every country. Housing, for example, was a regulatory agency in Canada and in New Zealand until the 1980s.
33. In the Canadian case, the two top levels were assistant deputy minister and above. In the United States, they were assistant secretaries and above. In the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, they were deputy secretaries and above and in Mauritius, principal assistant secretaries and above.
34. See Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: Who's Who Canadian Publications; [from 1972 to 1978]); Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: University of Toronto Press [from 1979 to 1991]); Canadian Almanac and Directory (Toronto: Copp-Clark, 1987); and Pierre Coutoure and Louis Coutoure, Ottawa Senior Executives Guide (Ottawa: Communications Nova Plus [from 1987 to 1991]).
35. See Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: Who's Who Canadian Publications; [from 1972 to 1978]); Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: University of Toronto Press [from 1979 to 1991]); Canadian Almanac and Directory (Toronto: Copp-Clark, 1987); and Pierre Coutoure and Louis Coutoure, Ottawa Senior Executives Guide (Ottawa: Communications Nova Plus [from 1987 to 1991]).
36. See Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: Who's Who Canadian Publications; [from 1972 to 1978]); Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: University of Toronto Press [from 1979 to 1991]); Canadian Almanac and Directory (Toronto: Copp-Clark, 1987); and Pierre Coutoure and Louis Coutoure, Ottawa Senior Executives Guide (Ottawa: Communications Nova Plus [from 1987 to 1991]).
37. See Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: Who's Who Canadian Publications; [from 1972 to 1978]); Canada's Who's Who (Toronto: University of Toronto Press [from 1979 to 1991]); Canadian Almanac and Directory (Toronto: Copp-Clark, 1987); and Pierre Coutoure and Louis Coutoure, Ottawa Senior Executives Guide (Ottawa: Communications Nova Plus [from 1987 to 1991]).
38. United Kingdom, The British Imperial Calendar and Civil Service List, (London: HMSO, 1972); United Kingdom, Civil Service Yearbook (London: HMSO, [from 1980 to 1991]); and Who's Who 1991 (London: A&C Black, 1991).
39. United Kingdom, The British Imperial Calendar and Civil Service List, (London: HMSO, 1972); United Kingdom, Civil Service Yearbook (London: HMSO, [from 1980 to 1991]); and Who's Who 1991 (London: A&C Black, 1991).
40. United Kingdom, The British Imperial Calendar and Civil Service List, (London: HMSO, 1972); United Kingdom, Civil Service Yearbook (London: HMSO, [from 1980 to 1991]); and Who's Who 1991 (London: A&C Black, 1991).
41. United States, Official Congressional Directory (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, various years); United States, Department of State, The Biographic Register (Washington: Department of State, Office of Operations: Publishing and Reproduction Division [from 1971 to 1974]) ; and Who's Who in American Politics, 12th edition (New York: R.B. Bowker, 1989).
42. United States, Official Congressional Directory (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, various years); United States, Department of State, The Biographic Register (Washington: Department of State, Office of Operations: Publishing and Reproduction Division [from 1971 to 1974]) ; and Who's Who in American Politics, 12th edition (New York: R.B. Bowker, 1989).
43. United States, Official Congressional Directory (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, various years); United States, Department of State, The Biographic Register (Washington: Department of State, Office of Operations: Publishing and Reproduction Division [from 1971 to 1974]) ; and Who's Who in American Politics, 12th edition (New York: R.B. Bowker, 1989).
44. In some cases, departmental functions were combined in so-called "superministries." For example, in the United Kingdom, the former Ministry of Housing and Local Government was included in the jurisdiction of the Department of the Environment when it was formed in 1970. Similarly, in Australia, housing and the environment are both part of the Ministry of Arts, Sports, Environment, Tourism and Territories. In such cases, service in any part of the previous separate ministries was considered to be within the department. As a result, the degree of mobility may be understated. Changes in two of the countries also made it necessary to backtrack on some of the more recent appointments. New Zealand, for example, no longer maintains centralized staff lists of government departments. All staffing matters have been decentralized to the department level. Similarly, Mauritius stopped publishing staff lists in 1985, but their Public Service Commission was very helpful in providing the missing data.
45. Entries in the various Who's Who were often of uneven quality, with the most common missing feature being the area of specialization in education. This was most commonly a problem in the British and Australian cases.
46. Carroll, "Politics and Administration: A Trichotomy?" Governance.
47. Barbara Wake Carroll and S.K. Joypaul, "The Mauritian Senior Public Service Since Independence: Some Lessons for Developing and Developed Countries," International Review of Administrative Sciences 59, no. 3 (September 1993), pp. 423-40.
48. B. Guy Peters, "Morale in the Public Service: A Comparative Inquiry," International Review of Administrative Sciences 57, no. 3 (September 1991), pp. 421-40.
49. Mary E. Hildebrand and Merilee S. Grindle, "Building Sustainable Capacity: Challenges for the Public Sector," (Cambridge: Harvard Institute for International Development, 1994) [mimeo].
50. Coordinating Committee of Deputy Ministers Policy, "Strengthening Our Policy Capacity," Report of the Task Force.
51. Carroll, "Politics and Administration: A Trichotomy?" Governance.
52. See Colin Mills, Patterns of Change in Housing Projects (Kingston: Queen's University, School of Urban and Regional Planning, 1990).
53. In his interviews with senior bureaucrats and political leaders during this time period, Gordon Osbaldeston found that both groups were becoming increasingly concerned about some of the negative consequences associated with the rapid movement of deputy ministers among departments. A lack of departmental expertise on the part of deputy ministers, the needless fracturing of effective minister-deputy minister relationships and the blurring of the lines of public accountability were the principal concerns expressed. See Gordon F. Osbaldeston, Keeping Deputy Ministers Accountable (Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1989), pp. 140-7.
54. Martin, "Executive Branch Appointments in the Reagan Administration," Western Political Quarterly.
55. See Carroll, "Structure of the Canadian bureaucratic elite," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION; and Carroll and Joypaul, "Mauritian Senior Public Service," International Review of Administrative Sciences.
56. See Carroll, "Structure of the Canadian bureaucratic elite," CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION; and Carroll and Joypaul, "Mauritian Senior Public Service," International Review of Administrative Sciences.
57. Jacques Bourgault, Stéphane Dion and Marc Lemay, "Creating a Corporate Culture: Lessons from the Canadian Federal Government," Public Administration Review 53, no. 1 (January/ February 1993), pp. 73-80.
58. Ibid., p. 77.
59. They note in particular the failure of what might be termed the "strong central agency" and "rapid rotation of deputy ministers" strategies. They also note that while Australia, Great Britain, New Zealand and the United States have similar systems in place for evaluating their senior bureaucrats, none of these countries has extended the process to cover the very top level of the bureaucracy. See Ibid., pp. 74-5.
60. Aucoin, New Public Management, p. 173.
61. Ibid., pp. 246-56. Of course, these conditions are only partially applicable to the U.S., given its different institutional structures.
62. Aucoin's New Public Management is probably the most comprehensive work available that examines the structural reforms in Australia, Britain, Canada and New Zealand in comparative perspective. Another valuable work dealing with the reforms in Britain is Richard Common, Norman Flynn and Elizabeth Mellon, Managing Public Services: Competition and Decentralization (Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 1992). The U.S. case is well covered in Savoie, Thatcher, Reagan, Mulroney.
63. Aucoin's New Public Management is probably the most comprehensive work available that examines the structural reforms in Australia, Britain, Canada and New Zealand in comparative perspective. Another valuable work dealing with the reforms in Britain is Richard Common, Norman Flynn and Elizabeth Mellon, Managing Public Services: Competition and Decentralization (Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 1992). The U.S. case is well covered in Savoie, Thatcher, Reagan, Mulroney.
64. Aucoin's New Public Management is probably the most comprehensive work available that examines the structural reforms in Australia, Britain, Canada and New Zealand in comparative perspective. Another valuable work dealing with the reforms in Britain is Richard Common, Norman Flynn and Elizabeth Mellon, Managing Public Services: Competition and Decentralization (Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 1992). The U.S. case is well covered in Savoie, Thatcher, Reagan, Mulroney.
65. Bourgault, Dion and Lemay note that the Committee of Senior Officials (coso), which carries out performance evaluations on Canadian deputy ministers, is placing more emphasis on managerial skills as an evaluation criterion. Given that bonuses are ultimately awarded on the basis of the performance evaluations carried out by coso, this increased focus on managerial skills might serve to encourage management training among senior officials. See Bourgault, Dion and Lemay, "Creating a Corporate Culture," Public Administration Review, p. 77.
66. See Andrew Hede, "Trends in the Higher Civil Service of Anglo-American Systems," Governance 4, no. 4 (October 1991), pp. 489-510; Jonathan Boston, "Transforming New Zealand's Public Sector: Labour's Quest for Improved Efficiency and Accountability," Public Administration 65 (Winter 1987), pp. 423-42; and Australia, Commonwealth, The Senior Executive Service 1984-1989. Senior Executive Staffing Unit Occasional Papers (Canberra: Public Service Commission, 1990).
67. See Andrew Hede, "Trends in the Higher Civil Service of Anglo-American Systems," Governance 4, no. 4 (October 1991), pp. 489-510; Jonathan Boston, "Transforming New Zealand's Public Sector: Labour's Quest for Improved Efficiency and Accountability," Public Administration 65 (Winter 1987), pp. 423-42; and Australia, Commonwealth, The Senior Executive Service 1984-1989. Senior Executive Staffing Unit Occasional Papers (Canberra: Public Service Commission, 1990).
68. See Andrew Hede, "Trends in the Higher Civil Service of Anglo-American Systems," Governance 4, no. 4 (October 1991), pp. 489-510; Jonathan Boston, "Transforming New Zealand's Public Sector: Labour's Quest for Improved Efficiency and Accountability," Public Administration 65 (Winter 1987), pp. 423-42; and Australia, Commonwealth, The Senior Executive Service 1984-1989. Senior Executive Staffing Unit Occasional Papers (Canberra: Public Service Commission, 1990).
69. This information was based on interviews by the authors with relevant individuals in staffing in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Mauritius, and on interviews with senior managers in Canada, carried out as part of a larger study by B.W. Carroll and D. Siegel.
70. Joel D. Aberbach et al., Bureaucrats and Politicians in Western Democracies (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1981).
71. R.J. Gregory, "The Attitude of Senior Public Servants in Australia and New Zealand: Administrative Reform and Technocratic Consequence?" Governance 4, no. 3 (July 1991), pp. 295-331.
72. See Barbara Czarnlawska-Joerges and Rolf Wolff, "Leaders, Managers and Entrepreneurs: On and Off the Organizational Stage," Organization Studies 12, no. 4 (1991), pp. 529-46; and Christopher Hood, "Emerging Issues in Public Administration," Public Administration 73 (Spring 1995), pp. 165-83.
73. See Barbara Czarnlawska-Joerges and Rolf Wolff, "Leaders, Managers and Entrepreneurs: On and Off the Organizational Stage," Organization Studies 12, no. 4 (1991), pp. 529-46; and Christopher Hood, "Emerging Issues in Public Administration," Public Administration 73 (Spring 1995), pp. 165-83.