Public Value as Rhetoric: A Budgeting Approach
- 19 September 2017
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in International Journal of Public Administration
- Vol. 41 (15), 1217-1227
- https://doi.org/10.1080/01900692.2017.1373673
Abstract
The public value theory has been accused of serving as a "rhetorical device" for public managers to advance their interests and influence vis-a-vis politicians. This article uses Legislative Budget Offices (LBOs) as a lens to re-examine the theme of "public value as rhetoric". It examines how an LBO can relegate itself to a lower public value-creating position that avoids conflict with politicians, which then allows politicians to employ rhetoric such as fiscal "sustainability" and "responsibility", without making actual budget choices that incur political costs. The findings of the article suggest that the use of public value as rhetoric is a function of contradictory values held by citizens, which politicians and public managers must reconcile by choosing to divert either resources or rhetoric. Furthermore, rhetoric is bidirectional, and employable not just by public managers, but by politicians as well.Keywords
This publication has 25 references indexed in Scilit:
- Creating the Public In Order To Create Public Value?International Journal of Public Administration, 2009
- Public Value Creation and Management Control SystemsInternational Journal of Public Administration, 2009
- Public Value Inside: What is Public Value Creation?International Journal of Public Administration, 2009
- Budgeting in AustraliaOECD Journal on Budgeting, 2008
- The Limits to Public Value, or Rescuing Responsible Government from the Platonic GuardiansAustralian Journal of Public Administration, 2007
- From New Public Management to Public Value: Paradigmatic Change and Managerial ImplicationsAustralian Journal of Public Administration, 2007
- Public Value ManagementThe American Review of Public Administration, 2006
- The Public Value Scorecard: A Rejoinder and an Alternative to 'Strategic Performance Measurement and Management in Non-Profit Organizations' by Robert KaplanSSRN Electronic Journal, 2003
- "Civic Discovery" as a Rhetorical StrategyJournal of Policy Analysis and Management, 1995
- PUBLIC VALUE AS THE FOCUS OF STRATEGYAustralian Journal of Public Administration, 1994