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Politics and Public Value

Politics and Public Value Gerry Stoker University of Southampton Does politics need to exist? Understanding the answer to this question helps us to debate the connection between politics and public value Two negative answers and two positive answers

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Politics and Public Value

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  1. Politics and Public Value Gerry Stoker University of Southampton

  2. Does politics need to exist? • Understanding the answer to this question helps us to debate the connection between politics and public value • Two negative answers and two positive answers • Two call for ‘rule’ and two call for politics as I understand it

  3. Politics and human misbehaviour • The original sin argument: the human soul is flawed and prone to base acts • Hobbes and Machiavelli: humans need to be ruled • Modern economistic version: humans are self-interested. Motivation that is considered positive in the commercial/market realm is negative in public realm and needs to be managed • Designing institutions for knaves: rules, monitoring, incentives and regulation

  4. Politics exists because of manufactured conflicts • The idea that people would really agree with one another given the chance is widely held • One of the strongest findings from social psychology is that people tend to assume that others (w)should agree with them • Among social theories the idea a consensus exists to be found is common: Rousseau, Marx, some deliberation thinking and many managerial perspectives • We need to be organized towards consensus by taking issues away from the heat of politics

  5. Two positive arguments • Because of the idiosyncrasy and partiality of human judgement: we value different things • Because in an interdependent world we need to co-operate but our competing sense of values make it difficult to do so

  6. Public value debate has not focused sufficiently on politics • Politics and management have become more intertwined • And increasingly relate to one another in a more challenging environment ~ multiple sources of policy advice ~ complex and competing accountabilities ~speed and intensity of delivery pressure ~ vertical integration more enhanced

  7. Indeed key trend has been towards the denial of politics • Partnership seen as a way of keeping short-term politics at bay • The role of independent bodies and commissions • Politics is seen as having failed: Governance of Britain

  8. We argue instead to expand the repertoire of politics • Exploring the art of representation • Developing forms of direct engagement • Meta-governance capacity • Greater reflexivity

  9. All in the context of a realist understanding of politics • Conflict is real but not always base or instrumental • Power is always present: reconciling interests and values according to standing • Politics works thru reason and beyond

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