Potential for Comparative Public Opinion Research in Public Administration

Abstract

The public administration and public services have always taken a marginal place in the political scientists’ behavioural research. Public administration students on the other hand tend to focus on political and administrative elites and institutions, and largely ignored citizens in comparative research. In this article we make a plea for international comparative research on citizens’ attitudes towards the public administration from an interdisciplinary perspective. Available international survey material is discussed, and main trends in empirical practice and theoretical approaches are outlined, especially those with a potential impact on public sector reform.

Keywords: trust in government, satisfaction with service delivery, public opinion, administrative culture, survey research

JEL Classification: D73