NOT ON THE SAME PARADIGM: KUHN’S CONCEPT OF PARADIGM AND HOW TO APPLY IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Authors

  • Nisachon Prommarin Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University

Keywords:

Paradigm, Paradigm of Public Administration, Paradigm Shifts, Hybrid Paradigm, Public Administration

Abstract

This article aims to elucidate the experience of using the term and concept of paradigm in public administration since the beginning of the study of public administration in the United States. This article argues that while the origin of the concept of paradigm in public administration is derived from Kuhn's notion of paradigm, the use of the term and its framing as a conceptual framework for studying the evolution of knowledge in the field are different. Besides, the existence of paradigms and patterns of paradigm shifts in public administration possesses characteristics that diverge from Kuhn’s original work. The application of the concept of paradigm in public administration not only affirms its interdisciplinary essence but also indicates that public administration is a unique discipline. In the conclusion of the article, the author encapsulates suggestions for implementing Kuhn’s concept or any other concept to study in the field.

References

ทินพันธุ์ นาคะตะ. (2558). กระบวนทัศน์รัฐประศาสนศาสตร์ไทย อดีต ปัจจุบัน และอนาคต: จากมุมมองของนักรัฐศาสตร์. ใน สุจิตรา บุณยรัตพันธุ์ (บรรณาธิการ). รัฐประศาสนศาสตร์ในประเทศไทย การเปลี่ยนแปลง การพัฒนา และทิศทาง. (น.3). กรุงเทพฯ: สุขุมวิทมีเดีย มาร์เก็ตติ้ง จำกัด.

นิศาชล พรหมรินทร์. (2555). วิวัฒนาการกระบวนทัศน์รัฐประศาสนศาสตร์ไทย. กรุงเทพฯ: โรงพิมพ์แห่งจุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย.

ปกรณ์ ศิริประกอบ และศุภชัย ยาวะประภาษ. (2563). การปฏิรูปการบริหารจัดการภาครัฐ: พาราไดม์ NPM ในประเทศนิวซีแลนด์ (พิมพ์ครั้งที่ 2). กรุงเทพฯ: สำนักพิมพ์จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย.

ปกรณ์ ศิริประกอบ. (2565). 3 พาราไดม์ทางรัฐประศาสนศาสตร์ แนวคิด ทฤษฎี และการนำไปปฏิบัติจริง (พิมพ์ครั้งที่ 6). กรุงเทพฯ: สำนักพิมพ์จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย.

วันชัย มีชาติ. (2550). การบริหารองค์การ (พิมพ์ครั้งที่ 2). กรุงเทพฯ: สำนักพิมพ์แห่งจุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย.

สิริเพ็ญ พิริยจิตรกรกิจ. (2540). บทวิพากษ์คูห์นในเรื่องการเปลี่ยนแพราไดม์. กรุงเทพฯ: สำนักพิมพ์วิภาษา.

Aucoin, P. (1990). Administrative reform in public management: paradigms, principles, paradoxes and pendulums. Governance, 3(2), 116–137.

Bushouse, B. K. et al. (2011). Crossing the Divide: Building Bridges betweenPublic Administration Practitioners and Scholars. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 21(Suppl. 1), i99–i112.

Christensen, T. & Lægreid, P. (2011). Complexity and Hybrid Public Administration—Theoretical and Empirical Challenges. Public Organization Review, 11(4), 407–423.

Dunleavy, P. & Hood, C. (1994). From old public administration to new Public management. Public Money and Management, 14(3), 9–16.

Dunleavy, P. et al. (2005). New Public Management Is Dead-Long Live Digital-Era Governance. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 16, 467–494.

Goldfinch, S. & Yamamoto, K. (2018). Citizen Perceptions of Public Management: Hybridization and Post-New Public Management in Japan and New Zealand. Australian Journal of Public Administration, 1–16.

Golembiewski, R. T. (1974). Public Administration as a Field: Four Developmental Phases. GPSA Journal: The Georgia Political Science Association, 2(1), 21–49.

Gray, A. & Jenkins, B. (1995). From Public Administration to Public Management: Reassessing a revolution?. Public Administration, 73(spring), 75–99.

Hacking, I. (2012). Introductory Essay. In Kuhn, T. S., The Structure of Scientific Revolutions: 50th Anniversary Edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Hammerschmid, G. et al. (2024). A shift in paradigm? Collaborative public administration in the context of national digitalization strategies. Governance, 37, 411–430.

Henry, N. (1975). Paradigms of Public Administration. Public Administration Review, 35(4), 378–386.

_____. (2018). Paradigms of Public Administration. In N. Henry (ed.), Public Administration and Public Affairs. (13th) (pp. 35–52). New York: Routledge.

Hood, C. (1991). Public Management for all season? Public Administration, 69(1), 3–19.

Kernaghan, K. (1993). Reshaping government: the post-bureaucratic paradigm. Canadian Public Administration, 36(4), 636–644.

Kieser, A. (1997). Rhetoric and myth in management fashion. Organization, 4(1), 49–74.

Klijn, E. H. (2012). Public Management and Governance: a comparison of two paradigms to deal with modern complex problems. in D. Levi Faur (ed.). The handbook of governance. (pp. 201–214.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Kuhn, T. S. (1962). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

_____. (1970). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (2nd ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago.

Lodge, M. & Gill, D. (2011). Toward a New Era of Administrative Reform? The Myth of Post-NPM in New Zealand. Governance: An International Journal of Policy, Administration, and Institutions, 24(1), 141–166.

Marcum, J. A. (2005). Thomas Kuhn’s Revolution. New York: Continuum.

Masterman, M. (1970). The Nature of a Paradigm. In Lakatos, I. & Musgrave, A. (eds.), Criticism and the growth of knowledge. (pp.59–89). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Norman, R. & Gregory, R. (2003). Paradoxes and pendulum swings: Performance management in New Zealand’s public sector. Australian Journal of Public Administration, 62(4), 35–49.

Osborne, D. & Gaebler, T. (1993). Reinventing government. New York: Plume Books.

Osborne, S. (2010). The New Public Governance. London and New York: Routledge.

Polzer, T. et al. (2017). Institutional Hybridity in Public Sector Reform: Replacement, Blending, or Layering of Administrative Paradigms. How Institutions Matter! Research in Sociology of Organizations, 48B, 69-99.

Rainey, H. G. (1994). On paradigms, progress, and prospects for public Management. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 4(1), 41–48.

Riccucci, N. M. (2010). Public Administration: Traditions of Inquiry and Philosophies of Knowledge. Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press.

Rommel, J. & Christiaens, J. (2006). Beyond the paradigm clashes in public administration. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 28(4), 610–617.

Scarbrough, H. & Swan, J. (2001). Explaining the diffusion of knowledge Management: the role of fashion. British Journal of Management, 12(1), 3–12.

Torfing, J. & Triantafillou, P. (2013). ‘What’s in a Name? Grasping New PublicGovernance as a Political-Administrative System.’ International Review of Public Administration, 18(2), 9–25.

Waldo, D. (1968). Scope of the theory of public administration. In Charlesworth, J. C. (ed.), Theory and practice of public administration: Scope, objectives, and methods. (pp.1–26). Philadelphia, American Academy of Political and Social Science.

Walker, J. L. (1972). Brother, Can You Paradigm? PS: Political Science & Politics, 5(4), 419–422.

Downloads

Published

2026-08-25

How to Cite

Prommarin, N. (2026). NOT ON THE SAME PARADIGM: KUHN’S CONCEPT OF PARADIGM AND HOW TO APPLY IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION. Academic Journal of Political Science and Public Administration, 8(4), 168–177. retrieved from https://so08.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/AJPP/article/view/6452