Contract Consulting's Hidden Agenda: The Quest for Legitimacy in Government. Houten, D. R. V. & Goldman, P. The Pacific Sociological Review, 24(4):461--493, October, 1981. ArticleType: primary_article / Full publication date: Oct., 1981 / Copyright © 1981 Pacific Sociological Association
Paper abstract bibtex In recent years state and local governments have relied increasingly on a silent partner--the contract consultant--who is neither accountable nor responsive to democratic control. After discussing the rise in government consulting, this article suggests that the hiring of consultants is frequently motivated by a hidden agenda: the quest for legitimacy. On the basis of brief case histories of contract consulting, we argue that legitimacy comes as much from the consultancy process as from the substance of an expert's final report or specific recommendations. Using three additional cases, we indicate that reliance on the consultancy process can give rise to the increased effectiveness of "counter-consultants" that insurgent organizations may use to combat corporate or governmental adversaries.
@article{houten_contract_1981,
title = {Contract {Consulting}'s {Hidden} {Agenda}: {The} {Quest} for {Legitimacy} in {Government}},
volume = {24},
issn = {00308919},
shorttitle = {Contract {Consulting}'s {Hidden} {Agenda}},
url = {http://www.jstor.org.proxy.lib.sfu.ca/stable/1388778},
abstract = {In recent years state and local governments have relied increasingly on a silent partner--the contract consultant--who is neither accountable nor responsive to democratic control. After discussing the rise in government consulting, this article suggests that the hiring of consultants is frequently motivated by a hidden agenda: the quest for legitimacy. On the basis of brief case histories of contract consulting, we argue that legitimacy comes as much from the consultancy process as from the substance of an expert's final report or specific recommendations. Using three additional cases, we indicate that reliance on the consultancy process can give rise to the increased effectiveness of "counter-consultants" that insurgent organizations may use to combat corporate or governmental adversaries.},
number = {4},
urldate = {2010-03-17},
journal = {The Pacific Sociological Review},
author = {Houten, Donald R. Van and Goldman, Paul},
month = oct,
year = {1981},
note = {ArticleType: primary\_article / Full publication date: Oct., 1981 / Copyright © 1981 Pacific Sociological Association},
pages = {461--493},
file = {JSTOR Full Text PDF:files/21907/Houten and Goldman - 1981 - Contract Consulting's Hidden Agenda The Quest for.pdf:application/pdf}
}
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