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Accountability as a Cultural Keyword
Abstract and Figures
Given its emergence as a cultural keyword, we can no longer rely on our knowledge of accountability in its older, simpler and more precise forms. What we are dealing with is not merely a set of institutional arrangements or managerial mechanisms, but a cultural phenomenon that is dominating, altering and consuming our traditional notions of governance. Our objective here is to enhance our understanding of this emergent form of accountability as it relates to the domains of governance and politics.
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... The concept of accountability rose in popularity during the 90s, when new public management was at its heights (Dubnick, 2014). Social work research has generated considerable insight into the relation between accountability and new public management (e.g. ...
... Therefore, we build upon the public administration literature on public accountability (e.g. Dubnick, 2014;. This literature makes a distinction between an 'instrumental' and 'relational' approach in defining and researching accountability (Dubnick, 2014). ...
... Dubnick, 2014;. This literature makes a distinction between an 'instrumental' and 'relational' approach in defining and researching accountability (Dubnick, 2014). The instrumental approach only focuses on the mechanisms themselves that are part of a given structure and institution to hold public professionals accountable, and as a consequence neglect the agency of the actors that use them. ...
... Through the counter-accounts provided by members of the Windrush generation and their children, which were drawn upon by the official inquiry report, the weakness of the formal accountability structures and an underlying racial bias to the implementation of the immigration policies were exposed 4 . Dubnick (2014) argued that accountability is a basic form of human interaction "capable of (and often) existing independent of governance arrangements or any other institutional context" (cited in Abadzi, 2020, p. 69), and thus wherever humans interact there will be some form of account (see also De Loo & Kamminga (2021) that focuses on human relatedness and accountability in a choir). ...
... More specifically, we analyzed the discourses that were discussed by citizens on online social media about the care-protect application that the Indonesian government developed at the time of the COVID-19 outbreak. Discourse is a form of verbal (written) communication language designed to generate responses from citizens [26]. Discourse is a barometer to measure the insights and perceptions of citizens. ...
... Accountability Accountability has been examined in various domains, such as political science, public administration, social psychology, law, and business administration (Bovens et al., 2014). As a result, its definition is contested (Dubnick, 2014). This article refers to Bovens' (2007, p. 450) definition: accountability is "a relationship between an actor and a forum, in which the actor has an obligation to explain and to justify his or her conduct, the forum can pose questions and pass judgment, and the actor may face consequences." ...
Public accountability may involve dysfunction. However, few empirical studies explain when and how external accountability pressure and subsequent intraorganizational dynamics cause dysfunctions. To bridge this gap, using a case study method, we examined Japan’s public procurement after a series of scandals, focusing on the procurers’ cognition and behavior. First, we found that an administrative unit in a ministry leverages external pressure to enhance its power within the organization. Second, we identified bias toward procedural accountability rather than product accountability. Third, we noted the paradox that the excessive pursuit of procedural accountability undermines not only product accountability, but also procedural accountability.
This chapter aims to investigate the relationship between accountability and populism from a processual and integrated perspective. Populism is understood here as a culturally defined idiom for political action and debate that postulates, as a fundamental value, the primacy of people over political control. It will be shown how accountability, interpreted not as a mere governance tool but as a form of relationship based on control, can become a comparative category. This approach makes it possible to think of accountability as a process that integrates political and ethical dimensions. The comparativeness will thus make it possible to understand accountability’s specific features in the various contexts, even when these may not be immediately evident, thanks to the comparison between experience-near and experience-distant accountability. The distinction between the two will be thoroughly explained when providing the theoretical and anthropological backdrop to the analysis. Accountability raised in Anglo-Saxon contexts over the years seems to cross the boundaries of its accounting genealogy to become part of global history and will therefore be read as a particular accountability among various forms of the phenomenon.KeywordsAnthropology of populismpolitical exclusionAnthropology of political experienceEthical accountabilityAnti-establishmentCrisis of political representationDirect democracyPeopleInsecurityPublic narrativesMigrationCultural apocalypseScapesPowerHegemonyRituals of inversionForms of accountabilityGovernmentalityAppaduraiImaginationSocial controlrevolutionNeoliberalismPolitical mediationEliteresponsibilityExperience-near accountabilityExperience-distant accountabilityPolitical anthropologyGlobalization
This book provides the first in-depth empirical study of the European Parliament's powers of scrutiny of the executive in the European Union (EU) political system, focusing on the politically salient field of the Economic and Monetary Union. The expansion of executive decision-making during the euro crisis was accompanied by an empowerment of the European Parliament through legislative oversight. This book examines how the European Parliament exercises that oversight on a day-to-day basis and thus contributes to political accountability at the EU level. Building on an innovative analytical framework for the study of parliamentary questions and answers, Adina Akbik sheds light on the European Parliament's possibilities and limitations to hold EU executive bodies accountable more generally. Case studies cover the period 2012 to 2019 and include the European Central Bank in banking supervision, the European Commission, the Eurogroup, and the Economic and Financial Affairs Council. This title is Open Access.
Is public trust in the news media in decline? So polls seem to indicate. But the decline goes back to the early 1970s, and it may be that “trust” in the media at that point was too high for the good of a journalism trying to serve democracy. And “the media” is a very recent (1970s) notion popularized by some because it sounded more abstract and distant than a familiar term like “the press.” It may even be that people answering a pollster are not trying to report accurately their level of trust but are acting politically to align themselves with their favored party's perceived critique of the media. This essay tries to reach a deeper understanding of what gives rise to faith or skepticism in various cultural authorities, including journalism.
The Cambridge Companion to International Organizations Law illuminates, from a legal perspective, what international organizations are, what makes them 'tick' and how they affect the world around them. It critically discusses such classic issues as the concept of international organization and membership, as well as questions of internal relations, accountability and how they make law, set standards and otherwise affect both their member states and the world around them. The volume further discusses the role of international organizations in particular policy domains, zooming in on domains which are not often discussed through international organizations, including disarmament, energy, food security and health. Eventually, a picture emerges of international organizations as complex phenomena engaging in all sorts of activities and relationships, the operation and authority of which is underpinned by the rules and regulations of international law.
Part I. The Quest for Responsibility: 1. Complex organisations and the quest for responsibility 2. Complex organisations as corporate actors 3. Two concepts of responsibility Part II. Passive Responsibility: 4. Accountability: the problem of many hands 5. Corporate accountability: the organisation as a person 6. Hierarchical accountability: one for all 7. Collective accountability: all for one 8. Individual accountability: each for oneself Part III. Active Responsibility: 9. Virtue: active responsibility in complex organisations 10. Exit: resignation and refusal 11. Voice: whistleblowing and leaking 12. Loyalty: responsibility as a by-product.
This book examines whether the mechanisms of accountability characteristic of democratic systems are sufficient to induce the representatives to act in the best interest of the represented. The first part of the volume focuses on the role of elections, distinguishing different ways in which they may cause representation. The second part is devoted to the role of checks and balances, between the government and the parliament as well as between the government and the bureaucracy. The contributors of this volume, all leading scholars in the fields of American and comparative politics and political theory, address questions such as, whether elections induce governments to act in the interest of citizens. Are politicians in democracies accountable to voters in future elections? If so, does accountability induce politicians to represent citizens? Does accountability limit or enhance the scope of action of governments? Are governments that violate campaign mandates representative? Overall, the essays combine theoretical discussions, game-theoretic models, case studies, and statistical analyses, within a shared analytical approach and a standardized terminology. The empirical material is drawn from the well established democracies as well as from new democracies.
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