The Termination of Public Organizations: Theoretical Perspectives to Revitalize a Promising Research Area

While many studies deal with comparative public sector reform, the fundamental question of whether and to what extent states are actually able to abolish parts of their administrative structure remains untackled. Despite some efforts to solve this puzzle, the topic remains underestimated. This article identifies the main conceptual and theoretical problems associated with existent research on the termination of public organizations. Furthermore, the article systemizes various causal factors of termination into two broad dimensions: “organizational stickiness” and “political incentives.” Taken together, these constitute a typology, which is able to guide future empirical investigation of the termination of public organizations.

Christoph KnillEmail:

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Christian Adam   has received his B.A. in Politics and Public Administration from University of Konstanz. Michael W. Bauer   is Assistant Professor of Comparative Public Policy and Administration. Christoph Knill   is Professor of Comparative Public Policy and Administration. Philipp Studinger   is Student of Politics and Public Administration from the University of Konstanz.