Work

Behavioral Public Administration: Combining Insights from Public Administration and Psychology

Year: 2016

Type: article

Abstract: Behavioral public administration is the analysis of public administration from the micro‐level perspective of individual behavior and attitudes by drawing on insights from psychology on the behavior of individuals and groups. The authors discuss how scholars in public administration currently draw on theories and methods from psychology and related fields and point to research in public administration that could benefit from further integration. An analysis of public administration topics through a psychological lens can be useful to confirm, add nuance to, or extend classical public administration theories. As such, behavioral public administration complements traditional public administration. Furthermore, it could be a two‐way street for psychologists who want to test the external validity of their theories in a political‐administrative setting. Finally, four principles are proposed to narrow the gap between public administration and psychology .

Source: Public Administration Review

DOI: 10.1111/puar.12609

Authors: Stephan Grimmelikhuijsen, Sebastian Jilke, Asmus Leth Olsen, Lars Tummers

Institutions: Utrecht University, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Georgetown University, University of Copenhagen

Language: English

Topic: Public Policy and Administration Research

Subfield: Public Administration

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,250

Funders: Københavns Universitet, Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond