Rethinking Governance

The Centrality of the State in Modern Society

Stephen Bell, Andrew Hindmoor

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Year: 2009
• Print ISBN: 9780521712835
• eBook ISBN: 9780511687129
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Politics
• Index: Politics & International Relations

Several problems plague contemporary thinking about governance. From the multiple definitions that are often vague and confusing, to the assumption that governance strategies, networks and markets represent attempts by weakening states to maintain control. Rethinking Governance questions this view and seeks to clarify how we understand governance. Arguing that it is best understood as 'the strategies used by governments to help govern', the authors counter the view that governments have been decentred. They show that far from receding, states are in fact enhancing their capacity to govern by developing closer ties with non-government sectors. Identifying five 'modes' of government (governance through hierarchy, persuasion, markets and contracts, community engagement, and network associations), Stephen Bell and Andrew Hindmoor use practical examples to explore the strengths and limitations of each. In so doing, they demonstrate how modern states are using a mixture of governance modes to address specific policy problems. This book demonstrates why the argument that states are being 'hollowed out' is overblown.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-title
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Figures and tables
• Preface
• 1 A state-centric relational approach
• 2 The resilient state
• 3 Metagovernance and state capacity
• 4 Hierarchy and top-down governance
• 5 Governance through persuasion
• 6 Governance through markets and contracts
• 7 Governance through community engagement
• 8 Governance through associations
• 9 Conclusion
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index