Synonyms
Definition
Public choice theory is an economic theory that argues for public decision-making and the production and allocation of public goods and services to be based on citizens’ preferences.
Introduction
The theoretical concept of public choice theory (PCT) argues that government services are best organized by consumer-citizens’ preferences. This perception of choice is characterized by Tiebout’s (1956) consumer-voter theory that argues citizens shop around for communities that best fit their preferences and neoliberalism that argue governments are monopolies, which will inflate the cost of public goods and services. These two perspectives have shaped the PCT discourse that argues for market principles in the production and allocation of pubic goods and services. Public choice theory is a neoliberal theory which emphasizes the private sector in the deliverance of public goods and services and views citizen as consumers...
References
Aberbach JD, Rockman BA (2000) In the web of politics: three decades of the U.S. federal executive. Brookings Institution Press, Washington, DC
Buchanan JM (1984) Politics without romance: a sketch of positive public choice theory and its normative implications. In: Buchanan JM, Tollison RD (eds) The theory of public choice. The University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, pp 11–22
Dearlove J (1989) Neoclassical politics: public choice and political understanding. Rev Polit Econ 1(2):208
Frederickson HG (1990) Public administration and social equity. Public Adm Rev 50(2):228–237
Kettl DF (1993) Sharing power: public governance and private markets. The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC
Lauen DL (2007) Contextual explanations of school choice. Sociol Educ 80(3):179–209
McLaughlin AC (1900) Social compact and constitutional construction. Am Hist Rev 5(3):467–490
Mueller DC (1976) Public choice: a survey. J Econ Lit 14(2):395
Mueller DC (1984) Public choice: a survey. In: Buchanan JM, Tollison RD (eds) The theory of public choice. The University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, pp 23–67
Ostrom V (1975) Public choice theory: a new approach to institutional economics. Am J Agric Econ 57(5):844
Ostrom V, Ostrom E (1971) Public choice: a different approach to the study of public administration. Public Adm Rev 31(2):203–216
Quiggin J (1987) Egoistic rationality and public choice: a critical review of theory and evidence. Econ Rec 63(180):10
Rice MF (2004) Organizational culture, social equity, and diversity: teaching public administration education in the postmodern era. J Pub Aff Educ 10:143–154
Skogan WG (1976) Efficiency and effectiveness in big-city police departments. Public Adm Rev 36:278–286
Svara JH, Brunet JR (2004) Filling in the skeletal pillar: addressing social equity in introductory courses in public administration. J Pub Aff Educ 10:99–109
Sweetland SR (2002) Theory into practice: free markets and public schooling. Clear House 76(1):8–12
Tiebout CM (1956) A pure theory of local expenditures. J Polit Econ 64:416–424.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Davis, K.W. (2016). Public Choice Theory of Organizations. In: Farazmand, A. (eds) Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31816-5_69-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31816-5_69-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-31816-5
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Economics and FinanceReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences