Children's services in the iron cage of performance management:street-level bureaucracy and the spectre of Švejkism

Wastell, D. and White, S. and Broadhurst, K. and Peckover, S. and Pithouse, A. (2010) Children's services in the iron cage of performance management:street-level bureaucracy and the spectre of Švejkism. International Journal of Social Welfare, 19 (3). pp. 310-320. ISSN 1468-2397

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Abstract

Recent UK government reforms have introduced a range of measures to regulate practice in child welfare, with professional work increasingly structured into formal processes embedded in information technology. This prompts obvious anxieties about the erosion of professional discretion. Using Lipsky's concept of the street-level bureaucrat, we report on an ethnographical study examining how social workers organise their practice in an atmosphere of performance management. Clear indications of attenuated discretion are revealed, reflecting the shift to a managerial model of control. Of concern is the emergence of a pattern of formally conformant behaviour in which the letter of the organisational law is obeyed but without genuine commitment. Drawing on the anti-hero of Hašek's celebrated satire, we denote this form of passive resistance ‘Švejkism’. While showing up the absurdities of excessive managerial power, such behaviours are ultimately dysfunctional for the organisation; an alternative governance paradigm, based on professional values, is briefly outlined.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
International Journal of Social Welfare
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/3300/3312
Subjects:
?? SOCIAL WORKCHILDREN'S SERVICES INFORMATION TECHNOLOGYSTREET-LEVEL BUREAUCRACYŠVEJK DISCRETION FORMALISATION NEW PUBLIC MANAGEMENTSOCIOLOGY AND POLITICAL SCIENCE ??
ID Code:
28234
Deposited By:
Users 49 not found.
Deposited On:
18 Nov 2009 15:21
Refereed?:
No
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
21 Sep 2023 00:48