Public Value in Public Management

Public value (PV) signifies an organization’s subjectively relevant contribution (positive or negative) toward the common good. It describes the quality of the relationship between an individual and this individual’s own image of society. Whether something subjectively holds PV is therefore dynamic in nature. Consequentially, PV cannot be actively created in a deterministic sense (by an organization, e.g.), as it originates only in the evaluating individual. According to the public value theory (Meynhardt, 2008, 2009, 2015; Meynhardt et al., 2016), what is valued is determined by the subjective fulfillment of four basic needs: (1) gaining control and coherence over one’s conceptual system, (2) positive relationships, (3) maximizing pleasure and avoiding pain, and (4) positive self-evaluation.

Public Value has a short history, but a long tradition. It only appeared in the 1990s, but points to long lasting issues of the role of public administration and any other organization in society.