Advisor Information
Dr. Gary Marshall
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Start Date
26-3-2021 12:00 AM
End Date
26-3-2021 12:00 AM
Abstract
This research aims to develop an understandable and useful discourse for advancing work in public administration as a vocation among scholars and practitioners. The overarching research question guiding this study is: How do city managers understand and experience vocation? Adopting a narrative inquiry qualitative approach, this study uses semi-structured interviews to hear stories city managers tell about vocation, how they recognize a sense of vocation in colleagues, and what a discourse of vocation means for the field of public administration more broadly. This research serves as an exploratory study on work in public administration as a vocation and, thus, is in a unique position to inform public administration theory, practice, and education programs. Advancing a discourse of vocation for public administration informs how we think about work in public administration, provides us with a self-aware approach to work, and provides us with a shared language for navigating the human condition.
The Vocation of Public Service: A Normative Conceptualization of Work in Public Service
This research aims to develop an understandable and useful discourse for advancing work in public administration as a vocation among scholars and practitioners. The overarching research question guiding this study is: How do city managers understand and experience vocation? Adopting a narrative inquiry qualitative approach, this study uses semi-structured interviews to hear stories city managers tell about vocation, how they recognize a sense of vocation in colleagues, and what a discourse of vocation means for the field of public administration more broadly. This research serves as an exploratory study on work in public administration as a vocation and, thus, is in a unique position to inform public administration theory, practice, and education programs. Advancing a discourse of vocation for public administration informs how we think about work in public administration, provides us with a self-aware approach to work, and provides us with a shared language for navigating the human condition.