Dubnick, Melvin J., “Pathologies of Governance Reform: Promises, Pervasions and Perversions in the Age of Accountability ,” PA Times, 30, no. 10 (October 2007), pp. 3, 8.
[Originally published as “Promises, Pervasions and Perversions in the Age of Accountability,” CHIEF OFFICER , 17 (2006): 31-4.]
Author’s Note:
This commentary is based on remarks prepared for a public lecture at the Faculty of Business and Economics Governance Unit of Monash University (AUS) on March 15, 2006.
AI-Generated Summary:
The document critiques the widespread reliance on accountability in governance, highlighting its untested assumptions and potential negative consequences.
Overview of Accountability
- Emphasizes the growing demand for accountability across sectors, driven by beliefs it ensures justice, democracy, ethics, and performance.
- Argues these promises are based on unproven assumptions, risking distorted behaviors and wasted resources.
- Differentiates between governance accountability (internalized, relationship-based) and managerial accountability (imposed, standards-based).
Problems with Promises of Accountability
- Promotes a simplistic input-output model: accountability leads directly to justice, democracy, ethics, and performance.
- Contains tautologies: outcomes are redefined to fit accountability measures, often narrowing their original meaning.
- Relies on flawed assumptions about human nature, often uncritically accepted and rarely empirically tested.
Errors in Implementation
- Errors of commission: overestimating accountability’s effectiveness, leading to misguided reforms.
- Errors of omission: lack of theoretical framing and valid testing protocols, resulting in unverified claims.
- Current assessments focus on compliance, not actual improvements, creating self-fulfilling false promises.
Pathological Consequences
- Diverts resources from actual objectives, creating a paradox where more accountability reduces effectiveness.
- Encourages perverse behaviors as individuals try to avoid negative consequences, undermining reform goals.
Recommendations
- Calls for developing better theories of accountability grounded in real-world testing.
- Highlights historical insights from public administration to improve understanding and policy design.