Friday, June 01, 2007

Research questions from the literature

I'm pleased, and slightly surprised to find that my initial questions, months ago, have developed into something researchable. I had thought those initial questions were researchable but perhaps they weren't and anyhow, I had a less clear idea of how I'd research them than I do now. From the literature I have evidence that both accountability and relationships are discursive constructions, which means that research needs a constructionist perspective, a qualitative approach to data collection and either grounded analysis or discourse analysis. I think the questions are:
  • To what extent do public sector managers account for their use of consultants?
  • What do different public sector managers do to demonstrate their accountability for managing consultants?
  • To what extent does the kind of client-consultant relationship, influence the expression of accountability in a public sector organisation?
  • Are there gaps in public accountability?


It's the third one that is researchable and most interests me.

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