Does governance perform? Concepts, evidence, causalities, and research strategies

Abstract

This chapter explores the relationship between the new forms of public governance and public service performance, and provide an agenda for research. The chapter starts with a discussion of the two key concepts - governance and performance – and then explores the theoretical relationship between them. In the next section, the focus turns to the empirical evidence on the impact of governance forms on organisational performance, which is found to be limited. The chapter then explores two ways forward for research. One approach is to examine the multiple possible causalities between governance and performance. The other is to adopt an interpretivist approach to the critical examination of the sets of governance design solutions embedded in prevailing discourses. The paper argues that this offers practical benefits for those engaged in designing governance arrangements that are intended to enhance performance.

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