The Public Administration Manifesto II: Matching Methods to Theory and Substance

Abstract

This essay introduces the articles in the public administration methods symposium that will appear in this and the next two issues of the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. Overall the articles present the need for a rigorous methodological pluralism in public administration where the methods used need to match the substantive questions asked. The symposium hopes to provide a spring board for a discussion of future methodological issues in public administration.