There is growing concern that welfare states are inefficient, unsustainable and lack popular support. New Public Management reforms affected the balance between managerial and political accountability and disrupted administrative, legal, professional and social accountability, causing confusion as to whom public organizations are really accountable.

The Routledge Handbook to Accountability and Welfare State Reforms in Europe assesses multi-dimensional accountability relations in depth, addressing the dynamic between accountability and reforms. Analyzing how welfare state reforms oriented towards agencification, managerialism and marketization affected existing relationships in services traditionally provided by public institutions, the theoretically informed, empirical chapters provide specific examples of their effect on accountability. Expert contributors explore the relationship between accountability and performance and the impact of reforms on political, administrative, managerial, legal, professional and social accountability. The role of specific actors, such as the media and citizens, on the accountability process addressing issues of blame avoidance, reputation and autonomous agencies is discussed.

Comparative chapters across time, countries, administrative levels and policy areas are included, along with discussions linking accountability with concepts like legitimacy, democracy, coordination and performance. This handbook will be an essential reference tool to those studying European politics and public policy.

About the Author

Tom Christensen is a Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Oslo, Norway.

Per L greid is a Professor in the Department of Administration and Organization Theory at the University of Bergen, Norway.

Reviews

"This book not only provides the most up-to-date map of tensions between logics of consequences and appropriateness of contemporary welfare states. It also discusses ways to cope with its paradoxes, contradictions and trade-offs. This publication is a perfect GPS for all those that navigate within and between responsibility and accountability of our welfare states." - Geert Bouckaert, President of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences, and Professor at the KU Leuven Public Governance Institute, Belgium

"The Welfare State has been central in legitimating contemporary governments, and accountability has been, and remains, a fundamental democratic concern. But both of these factors in contemporary political life continue to evolve. This handbook examines the intersection of these two factors, and the manner in which they continue to evolve. This is important reading for any student of contemporary governance." - B. Guy Peters, University of Pittsburgh, USA

"We live in an age of administrative and policy reforms. But we often do not understand their effects very well. This outstanding set of essays by leading scholars in the field delves deeply into the complex world of welfare state policy reforms and changing accountability mechanisms. Anyone interested in these topics will find this collection an invaluable, indeed an essential, source of insights and ideas." - Joel D. Aberbach, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

"A very rich volume that combines a sophisticated approach of accountability with detailed analyses of welfare state reform. It brings together Europe's best scholars on accountability and welfare state reform and provides a concise analysis of contemporary welfare state reform and its effects on accountability relations." - Mark Bovens, Utrecht University, the Netherlands

Book Information
ISBN 9780367462031
Author Tom Christensen
Format Paperback
Page Count 296
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 580g