‘Why don’t they just listen to the facts?’ The ‘neutral’ or ‘objective’ way of governing is often juxtaposed against political decision making. This is remarkable, since public administration research has problematized the notion of neutrality as opposed to political or value based for years. This article describes why the idea of true neutrality remains such a valued concept by drawing on over a year of observations in infrastructure policy processes. It concludes that neutrality is a popular concept because it satisfies people’s need for external validation in a way that suggests their position is correct beyond their own preferences.
Keywords: neutrality, objectivity, politics-administration dichotomy.
Citeren: Dorren, L. (2020) What do we talk about when we talk about neutrality? On the nature and popularity of the idea of a neutral administration. Public Note 4(1), p.3-6.
Keywords: neutrality, objectivity, politics-administration dichotomy.
Citeren: Dorren, L. (2020) What do we talk about when we talk about neutrality? On the nature and popularity of the idea of a neutral administration. Public Note 4(1), p.3-6.
| 2020_3-1_public_note_lars.pdf |
