Value contextuality in public service delivery. An analysis of street-level craftsmanship and public–private partnerships

This contribution questions the idea of value universalism and demonstrates that the actual meaning of good or ethical governance is context dependent—as are its constitutive values. To illustrate this point, Huberts’ value framework on integrity and quality of governance is contrasted to two empirical case studies that demonstrate the contextuality of values in two specific settings of public service delivery: street-level craftsmanship and public–private partnerships (PPPs). Findings show that values do not work along the lines of the systematic frameworks public administration scholars come up with. They work along the lines of personal interpretative repertoires, and, on an aggregate level, along the lines of the confined and decisive professional logics of bounded policy domain

Perceptions of the Frontline Craft: Assessing Value Convergence Between Policy Makers, Managers, and Street-Level Professionals in the Prison Sector

From the unique perspective of perceptions of the frontline craft, this study examines value convergence between policy makers, managers, and street-level professionals (N = 55). Toxic stereotyping between staff levels, exacerbated by restrictive organizational conditions, are shown to overshadow positive value convergence from socialization processes. In this Dutch prison study, public officials are consistently biased to believe that the management above them prioritizes targets (values that support the organization) over content (values that serve prison inmates). This explains how perceived role and value differences impact the actualization of shared values in public service delivery much more negatively than the actual differences

Values of Public Craftsmanship: The Mismatch Between Street-Level Ideals and Institutional Facilitation in the Prison Sector

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