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Critical Management Studies and public administration: Reinterpreting democratic governance using critical theory and poststructuralism
Author(s) -
Hudon PierreAndré,
Rouillard Christian
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
canadian public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.361
H-Index - 26
eISSN - 1754-7121
pISSN - 0008-4840
DOI - 10.1111/capa.12132
Subject(s) - democracy , corporate governance , normative , critical theory , postmodernism , sociology , administration (probate law) , epistemology , public administration , critical management studies , power (physics) , political science , social science , politics , law , economics , management , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics
In this article we present the schools of thought comprising Critical Management Studies (CMS), explore their implications for public administration, and provide an alternate definition of democratic governance. We synthesize and describe the “modern stream,” inspired by the Frankfurt School, and the “postmodern stream,” associated with poststructuralist authors. Despite significant epistemological and ontological differences, these perspectives complement each other and cast new light on democratic governance. We present the respective theories of Foucault and Habermas, explore their implications for public administration, reconcile their views on power as a basis for a normative definition for so‐called good governance, and redefine the concept of “democratic governance.”