Browsing by Author "Lucas, Meijs"

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    Defining and Measuring Coproduction: Deriving Lessons from Practicing Local Government Managers
    (Public Administration Review, 2022) Brudney, Jeffrey; Cheng, Yuan (Daniel); Lucas, Meijs
    Following a lapse in scholarly attention, coproduction, the joint production of services by government officials and citizens, has re-emerged as an important topic. However, the field lacks information on broad parameters of coproduction implementation and how public managers view coproduction. To address the lacuna, this study examines patterns of implementation of coproduction in a national sample of municipalities and counties in the U.S. According to their chief administrators, nearly half these governments have implemented one or more stages of coproduction, although co-delivery of services occurs least often. Empirical analysis suggests that the implementation of coproduction, as perceived by local government managers, can be measured along a unidimensional scale and that this measurement scale is robust across different subgroups. We also find that local governments that have larger population, provide more services, have more professional forms of administration, and are located in the western U.S. more often implement elements of coproduction.
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    Exploring the Relationship between Privatization in Public Service Delivery and Coproduction: Evidence from U.S. Local Governments
    (American Review of Public Administration, 2023) Cheng, Yuan; Jeff, Brudney; Lucas, Meijs
    Since the New Public Management Movement, privatization has become a popular approach for delivering public services. However, few studies empirically assess the relationship between privatization of public service delivery and citizen participation in coproduction. Taking advantage of a national survey of U.S. local government chief administrators, this study aims to contribute to the literature by exploring the link between these two important mechanisms of public service provision. Our findings indicate that local governments are more likely to involve citizens in coproduction when a larger proportion of service delivery is privatized. Regarding various types of coproduction, privatization in public service delivery is positively associated with the likelihood of citizen involvement in co-planning, co-design, and co-assessment, but not in co-delivery. Finally, compared to for-profit service providers, involving nonprofit organizations in public service delivery is likely to create more opportunities for citizens to be involved in the coproduction of public services.