Writing impactful reviews to rejuvenate public administration: A framework and recommendations

Abstract

Literature reviews have become widespread in public administration, especially in the past decade. These reviews typically adopt widely-accepted approaches with many drawing upon systematized approaches to review in fields like medicine and psychology. Public administration, however, is a professional, design-oriented discipline, focused on enhancing theory to solve real-life policy, administrative, and managerial challenges. Recognizing the unique traditions and purposes in public administration scholarship, it is important to take stock of how public administration scholars “do” reviews, with the aim of providing recommendations to rejuvenate the state of the art in reviewing. We present a framework to guide review efforts in public administration centered on purpose (why?), object (what?), subject (who?), community (for whom?) and practices (how?). Next, we present different approaches to doing reviews and how those approaches present different answers to the questions raised above. Finally, we discuss examples of public administration reviews within each approach and conclude with specific recommendations for researchers and practitioners who want to use reviews to rejuvenate public administration.