000 01509nam a22001457a 4500
999 _c523248
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008 230802b ||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100 _aRivera, Jason D. and Knox, Claire Connolly
_942223
245 _aBureaucratic discretion, social equity, and the administrative legitimacy dilemma: Complications of new public service
260 _aPublic Administration Review
300 _a83(1), Jan-Feb, 2023: p.65-77
520 _aBureaucratic discretion continues to be one of a public administrator's primary powers while at the same time being one of their most controversial. Used in a positive way, bureaucratic discretion can enhance social equity; however, this practice can create administrative legitimacy dilemmas. As such, this paper conceptually discusses the theoretical position of public administrators that contributes to their engagement in legitimacy dilemmas, which is further complicated by the tenets of New Public Service. We argue that if public administrators are engaged in authentic interactions with the public and use their discretion to reflect the interests of the public, then they are engaged in truly democratic governance. We place this argument in the context of achieving social equity and highlight an avoided question in public administration. Finally, recommendations for future research are offered as a means progressing the social equity agenda in public administration.- Reproduced
773 _aPublic Administration Review
906 _aBUREAUCRACY
942 _cAR