The rationalities of public values: conflicting values and conflicting rationalities

Political Philosophy and Ethic

De Verlicht Bestuurskundige. Over de raakvlakken van filosofie en bestuurskunde

The politics and administration of institutional change - ou

As good as it gets? On the meaning of public value in the study of policy and management

Public values are being promoted as a core concept in the study of public administration, in particular, in discourses surrounding Moore?s public value management and Bozeman?s public value failure. This article outlines the approaches to the concept of values and public values. Particular attention is paid to the founding distinction between facts and values, which proves to be less clear than usually assumed. After discussing a range of possible characteristics of public values, an encompassing definition is attempted, which consequently has to accommodate opposing characteristics. It is concluded that the concept of public value is a fuzzy concept, and that is probably "as good as it gets."FGW – Publications without University Leiden contrac

Swearing to be a Good Banker

After the banking crisis, the Dutch government decided to make it a legal requirement for the employees of banks to make a moral-ethical statement or "banker's oath". There is, however, no empirical study upon which this drastic measure was based, and from which positive effects can be expected. We therefore conducted a survey among bank employees and their direct clients to check their possible familiarity with such an oath and the expected impact. This paper provides a clear view on perceptions of the banker?s oath and is a solid starting point for further research. The results show that trust in the banker's oath does not seem to be very high. Bank employees in particular are opposed to it. Furthermore, knowledge of the oath concept appears to be low. The results make it doubtful whether a banker's oath can meet expectations; rather, it is merely the capstone in an attempt to promote integrity and restore confidence in the financial sector. At this moment, the banker's oath is not a professional oath, and though legally required is also not a political oath that is taken before the governmen

Against the rule of man: the Confucian and Western traditions of good administration

This article investigates the Confucian and Western traditions specifically with regard to the relation between morality, law and good administration. It is argued that the common opposition between the rule of man and the rule of law as reflecting the basic difference between the two traditions is inadequate. Confucianism can be better characterized positively as the rule of morality. It should also be noticed that ?the rule of law? is increasingly being introduced into the Chinese administration. Similarly, even though the Western tradition can be summarized in terms of the rule of law, it is acknowledged that ?the rule of man? cannot be avoided, and that morality is important. Both traditions oppose the rule of man, in as far as it refers to someone acting out his selfish preferences. It is concluded that good administration requires officials with both good morality and respect for the law; whether this is a kind of convergence is a matter of debate.FGW – Publications without University Leiden contrac