CO‐DESIGN‐ing a more context‐based, pluralistic, and participatory future for public administration

• Published in: Public administration (London) Vol. 100; no. 1; pp. 72 - 97
• Main Authors: Schwoerer, Kayla, Keppeler, Florian, Mussagulova, Assel, Puello, Stephanie
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2022
• Subjects: Production; Public administration; Social problems
• ISSN: 0033-3298; 1467-9299
• DOI: 10.1111/padm.12828

Public administration (PA) increasingly faces new and emerging challenges. To address such challenges, researchers can work collaboratively with practitioners to identify and tackle the most pressing issues. Yet, intentionally establishing an ongoing dialogue not only between researchers and practitioners but between researchers, practitioners, and the communities that PA scholarship and practice are intended to impact can enhance all stakeholders' understanding of complex social problems and improve solutions. Forms of participatory and context‐based research such as this are called many things across disciplines, but PA has yet to embrace such approaches fully. Thus, we introduce a framework entitled CO‐DESIGN, intended to illustrate the process of advancing PA research through the co‐production of knowledge between researchers, practitioners, and communities. Additionally, it serves as an acronym outlining eight focal areas we argue the co‐production of knowledge can help advance. We discuss the CO‐DESIGN process and agenda, including its implications for the field.