Are public sector institutions being exposed to ever-greater oversight, audit and inspection in the name of efficiency, accountability and risk management? "Controlling Modern Government" explores the long-term development of controls over government across five major state traditions in developed democracies - US, Japan, variants of continental-European models, a Scandinavian case and variants of the Westminster model. A central aspect of the study is an eight country comparison of variety in the use of controls based in oversight, competition, mutuality and contrived randomness in the...

Taking a comparative and analytical perspective, the authoritatively, yet accessibly written, country chapters show how salient the politics of representativeness have become in increasingly diverse societies. At the same time, they illustrate the wide variety of practice based on different political systems, administrative structures, and cultural settings.

What is the relationship between the composition of the public sector workforce and the nature of the society it serves? Taking a comparative and analytical perspective, the authoritative and accessible chapters illustrate the salience of representative politics in diverse societies. The book explores the wide variety of practice based on different political systems, administrative structures, and cultural settings, and discusses topical issues of public bureaucracies worldwide.

B. Guy Peters presents a critique of conventional policy design methods, placing emphasis on the need to formulate interconnecting designs for issues that cross multiple policy areas. He advocates the use of analytic categories for understanding problems rather than functional categories, such as defence and health, to change the perspective of problems and modernize policy design. Whereas previous literature takes a top-down, technocratic approach, this new perspective emphasizes the importance of context and the pressing need to unite designs between policy areas. Effective methods...

How are institutions formed and how do they change? How do institutions interact to produce action? And how formal do institutions need to be to become effective actors of governance? This textbook provides a thorough examination of institutions from a number of theoretical perspectives to identify their key characteristics. Key features of the fourth edition: * Eight consistent questions are used to highlight the similarities and differences between institutions, using both formal and informal examples * Two new chapters focus on informal institutions and the process of...

How are institutions formed and how do they change? How do institutions interact to produce action? And how formal do institutions need to be to become effective actors of governance? This textbook provides a thorough examination of institutions from a number of theoretical perspectives to identify their key characteristics. Key features of the fourth edition: * Eight consistent questions are used to highlight the similarities and differences between institutions, using both formal and informal examples * Two new chapters focus on informal institutions and the process of...

This timely Handbook offers a wide-ranging examination of contemporary comparative policy analysis (CPA), advancing the understanding of methodology in the study of comparative public policies, and broadening the array of methods and techniques deployed by scholars in the field. Internationally acclaimed contributors overcome the current concentration on quantitative techniques, engaging with a more conscious and comprehensive selection of methods to improve the quality of CPA. Providing an overview of the major theoretical issues currently under discussion in CPA and the methodological...

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. Jon Pierre and Guy Peters expertly guide the reader through governance - one of the most widely used terms in political science - and its differing interpretations, with comprehensive discussion of the key issues covering global as well as local level...

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world's leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. Jon Pierre and Guy Peters expertly guide the reader through governance - one of the most widely used terms in political science - and its differing interpretations, with comprehensive discussion of the key issues covering global as well as local level...