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Who Should We Count as Citizens? Categorizing People in Public Administration Research
Author(s) -
Roberts Alasdair
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
public administration review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.721
H-Index - 139
eISSN - 1540-6210
pISSN - 0033-3352
DOI - 10.1111/puar.13270
Subject(s) - citizenship , jurisdiction , administration (probate law) , core (optical fiber) , public relations , population , political science , public administration , sociology , psychology , law , computer science , politics , telecommunications , demography
Citizenship is a core concept in public administration research . This article examines how the concept was employed in 29 research articles published in Public Administration Review since 2009 . It finds two difficulties . The first is a tendency to omit an explicit definition of the concept , contrary to good practice . The second is a tendency to adopt an implied definition of citizenship that encompasses all of the general population . The article considers possible justifications for current practice . Research would be improved by using the concept less frequently , defining it explicitly , adopting a definition that is closer to ordinary usage , and attending more carefully to the ways in which attitudes and behavior are influenced by a person's status within a jurisdiction .