
Public Administration
Traditions of Inquiry and Philosophies of Knowledge, updated edition
Norma M. Riccucci(Author)
Georgetown University Press
2nd Edition
Will be published approx. on 1. July 2026
Book
Hardback
255 pages
978-1-64712-726-8 (ISBN)
Description
This updated classic on public administration highlights advances in the field
Since the publication of the first edition of Public Administration in 2010, this field has seen numerous advances in and augmentations to its logic of inquiry. While the foundational concepts examined in the book's first edition remain unchanged, Norma Riccucci has updated the book by adding a new preface and a substantive postscript discussing evolutions in the field over the last fifteen years.
Public Administration examines the intellectual origins and identity of the discipline, the debates surrounding its diverse research traditions, and how public administration research is conducted today. The book intends to engage scholars, graduate students, and professionals in a dialogue about heterogeneity in epistemic traditions, and to deepen the field's understanding and acceptance of its epistemological scope. This updated edition also addresses recent research, highlighting an expanding array of innovative practices, ontologies, epistemological perspectives, methods, and issues of race, gender, and ethnicity in public administration.
The original edition of the book was the winner of the best book award from the American Society for Public Administration's Section on Public Administration Research. This updated classic provides a concise overview of the discipline for graduate students and scholars.
Public Management and Change Series
Since the publication of the first edition of Public Administration in 2010, this field has seen numerous advances in and augmentations to its logic of inquiry. While the foundational concepts examined in the book's first edition remain unchanged, Norma Riccucci has updated the book by adding a new preface and a substantive postscript discussing evolutions in the field over the last fifteen years.
Public Administration examines the intellectual origins and identity of the discipline, the debates surrounding its diverse research traditions, and how public administration research is conducted today. The book intends to engage scholars, graduate students, and professionals in a dialogue about heterogeneity in epistemic traditions, and to deepen the field's understanding and acceptance of its epistemological scope. This updated edition also addresses recent research, highlighting an expanding array of innovative practices, ontologies, epistemological perspectives, methods, and issues of race, gender, and ethnicity in public administration.
The original edition of the book was the winner of the best book award from the American Society for Public Administration's Section on Public Administration Research. This updated classic provides a concise overview of the discipline for graduate students and scholars.
Public Management and Change Series
More details
Edition
updated edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Washington, DC
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
US School Grade: College Graduate Student and over
Edition type
Revised edition
Product notice
Laminated cover
Illustrations
1 Figures; 4 Tables, unspecified
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
447 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-64712-726-8 (9781647127268)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Norma M. Riccucci is Board of Governors Distinguished Professor at the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Rutgers University, Newark. She is the author of How Management Matters: Street-Level Bureaucrats and Welfare Reform (2005), winner of the Herbert Simon Book Award; and of Critical Race Theory: Exploring Its Application to Public Administration (2022).
Content
List of Illustrations
Preface to the Updated Edition Acknowledgments
Acknowledgments for the Updated Edition
Introduction
1 Intellectual Heritage and Theoretical Developments: Is Public Administration an Art or a Science?
2 Searching for a Paradigm: Public Administration as a Postnormal Science
3 Identity Crises in the Social Sciences
4 Searching for Truth: The Logic of Inquiry in Public Administration
5 Theory Building through Qualitative Approaches
6 Theory Building through Quantitative Research
7 Theory Building through Mixed-Method Research
8 Heterogeneity in Epistemic Traditions
Postscript to the Updated Edition
References
Index
Preface to the Updated Edition Acknowledgments
Acknowledgments for the Updated Edition
Introduction
1 Intellectual Heritage and Theoretical Developments: Is Public Administration an Art or a Science?
2 Searching for a Paradigm: Public Administration as a Postnormal Science
3 Identity Crises in the Social Sciences
4 Searching for Truth: The Logic of Inquiry in Public Administration
5 Theory Building through Qualitative Approaches
6 Theory Building through Quantitative Research
7 Theory Building through Mixed-Method Research
8 Heterogeneity in Epistemic Traditions
Postscript to the Updated Edition
References
Index