Do Australian public sector employees have the type of culture they want in the era of new public management?

New public management theory proposes that public sector organisations should be managed more like private sector organisations. It is therefore expected that public sector managers will have preferences for an organisational culture that will reflect the culture of private sector organisations, with an external rather than internal orientation. The current research investigated the idea that managers' perceptions of ideal organisational culture would be different to the bureaucratic model of culture (internally oriented), which has traditionally been associated with public sector organisations. Responses to a competing values culture inventory were received from 925 public sector employees. Results indicated that the bureaucratic model is still pervasive; however, managers prefer a culture that is more external, and less control focussed, as expected. Lower level employees expressed a desire for a culture that emphasised human relations values.

Regional renaissance? New forms of governance in nonmetropolitan Australia

Since the Second World War, Australian governments have adopted various approaches to governing nonmetropolitan Australia. The authors profile three distinct approaches to governance characterised as (1) state-centred regionalism; (2) new localism; and (3) new forms of multifaceted regionalism. Although recent policy initiatives have been justified by the argument that the region is the most suitable scale for planning and development in nonmetropolitan Australia, in practice the institutional landscape is a hybrid of overlapping local, regional, and national scales of action. The authors compare this new, multifaceted, regionalism with the so-called 'new regionalism currently being promoted in Western Europe and North America. It is argued that new regionalism differs in quite important ways from the regionalism currently being fostered in Australia. In Australia, the centrality of sustainability principles, and the attempt to foster interdependence amongst stakeholders from the state, market, and civil society, have produced a layer of networked governance that is different from that overseas. It is argued that there is a triple bottom-line 'promise' in the Australian approach which differs from the Western Europe/North American model, and which has the potential to deliver enhanced economic, social, and environmental outcomes.

Corporate governance codes in Australia and New Zealand: Propriety and prosperity

Overview of the central features of corporate governance codes, 'Principles of Good Corporate Governance and Best Practice Recommendations' (released by the ASX Corporate Governance Council) and 'Corporate Governance in New Zealand, Principles and Guidelines' (released by New Zealand Securities Commission) - whether the codes address the right problem - are the solutions of independence and disclosure conceptually and practically viable - whether codes pay sufficient attention to wealth creation.

Predictive genetic test decisions for Huntington's disease: context, appraisal and new moral imperatives

Predictive testing is one of the new genetic technologies which, in conjunction with developing fields such as pharmacogenomics, promises many benefits for preventive and population health. Understanding how individuals appraise and make genetic test decisions is increasingly relevant as the technology expands. Lay understandings of genetic risk and test decision-making, located within holistic life frameworks including family or kin relationships, may vary considerably from clinical representations of these phenomena. The predictive test for Huntington's disease (HD), whilst specific to a single-gene, serious, mature-onset but currently untreatable disorder, is regarded as a model in this context. This paper reports upon a qualitative Australian study which investigated predictive test decision-making by individuals at risk for HD, the contexts of their decisions and the appraisals which underpinned them. In-depth interviews were conducted in Australia with 16 individuals at 50% risk for HD, with variation across testing decisions, gender, age and selected characteristics. Findings suggested predictive testing was regarded as a significant life decision with important implications for self and others, while the right not to know genetic status was staunchly and unanimously defended. Multiple contexts of reference were identified within which test decisions were located, including intra- and inter-personal frameworks, family history and experience of HID, and temporality. Participants used two main criteria in appraising test options: perceived value of, or need for the test information, for self and/or significant others, and degree to which such information could be tolerated and managed, short and long-term, by self and/or others. Selected moral and ethical considerations involved in decision-making are examined, as well as the clinical and socio-political contexts in which predictive testing is located. The paper argues that psychosocial vulnerabilities generated by the availability of testing technologies and exacerbated by policy imperatives towards individual responsibility and self-governance should be addressed at broader societal levels. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social inclusion, new regionalism and associational governance: The Queensland experience

In recent years there has been a resurgence of decentralized social governance concerned with the spatial dimensions of disadvantage. This article examines aspects of this resurgence in the Australian state of Queensland where, after the hasty birth of 'place management' in response to the rise of 'Hansonism', a plethora of 'joined-up' policy initiatives were undertaken in relation to the regional dimensions of poverty. We propose that these trends reflect in part new ways of thinking about the spatial aspects of disadvantage which have emerged in recent years and which have the potential to take regional policy beyond the narrow confines imposed by neoliberal economic orthodoxy. These new ways of thinking have arisen in social policy through the refraining of disadvantage in terms of social exclusion and in regional economic policy through the influence of the so-called 'new regionalism'. The article shows how together these bodies of theory point us towards a new model of 'associational governance'. The article reviews recent Queensland experience and indicates those features of 'associational governance' which have become characteristic of locality-based social policy ideas in Queensland. 'Joined-up' and regional policy aspirations of the Queensland State government have shown the influence of these new approaches. The political and policy sustainability of these trends, however, is uncertain. The lingering shadow of managerialism and neoliberal policy frameworks remains a significant barrier to the innovation and viability of these approaches. More directly, the inherent limits of the 'local' or 'regional' initiatives in the face of broader national and global factors will significantly constrain the capacity of associational governance systems to deliver positive democratic, social and economic outcomes. The article examines recent Queensland policy refors in light of this complex set of factors and concludes by offering directions for future research and policy development.

Public opinion of a proposed wind farm situated close to a populated area in New Zealand: Results from a cross-sectional study

In accordance with New Zealand’s Resource Management Act 1991, in 2003, electricity generating company Genesis Energy made public its intention to apply for consent to build the Awhitu wind farm. Several community groups claiming to represent the majority opposed this application and in September 2004 consent was declined. The aim was to investigate the attitudes of local community members to the proposed wind farm. A survey was mailed to 500 Franklin residents, systematically selected from the local 2004/2005 telephone directory. Forty questionnaires were returned undelivered. Of the remaining 460, completed questionnaires were returned from 46% (211). Most, 70% (145), residents supported a wind farm being built in their area, with 17% (35) neutral, and only 13% (28) against the farm. There was no statistical difference in respondents’ attitudes between sex, age, or residential proximity to the farm. Respondents listed renewable resource (83%), suitability (78%), and environmental friendliness (76%) as main advantages. Visual unsightliness (24%) and noise pollution (21%) were listed as main perceived disadvantages. Contrary to the assertions of several lobby groups, the majority of local residents support the construction of the Awhitu wind farm. Scientifically robust methods are essential to measure appropriately community attitudes, particularly on contentious issues.

Administering Welfare Reform: International Transformations in Welfare Governance

While reforms of welfare policies have been widely analyzed, the reform of welfare administration has received far less attention. Using empirical case studies, this book provides significant new insights into the way welfare administration is being internationally transformed. Particular attention is given to the effect on welfare clients, staff, and agencies. The book presents a critical analysis of governance practices in welfare administration, examining shifts in the participants, practices, and processes. Administering Welfare Reform provides a much-needed international and comparative perspective of changing welfare governance.