什么使公共行政学成为一门科学?——从西蒙的遗产与教训切入

What Makes Public Administration a Science?A Perspective from Simon’s Heritages and Lessons

本文从西蒙的行政学研究切入公共行政学科学地位的讨论,尝试从知识论的角度探讨使公共行政学成为一门科学的可能性。使公共行政学成为一门社会科学至少需要为这门学科确定专门的研究对象、划定适当的研究范围、采用实证主义的研究方法、找到适当的研究视角、形成适用的概念。更重要的是在这五个方面需要形成学界的共识,而形成共识的关键则在于出现某一体现这五个方面要求并足以成为范例的理论成就。只有这样,公共行政学的知识合法性危机才有可能得到化解,公共行政学的科学地位才有可能得以确立,进而公共行政学身份危机的梦魇才有望祛除。

This paper discusses the scientific status of public administration from Simon’s administrative research,and tries to explore the possibility of making public administration a science from the perspective of epistemology.Making public administration a social science requires,at a minimum,the identification of specialized research objects for the subject,the delineation of appropriate research scope,the adoption of positivist research methods,the finding of appropriate research perspectives,and the formation of applicable concepts.More importantly,there is a need to form a consensus in these five aspects,and the key to consensus is the emergence of a theoretical achievement that embodies the requirements of these five aspects and is sufficient to become an exemplar or a shared example.Only in this way,the crisis of knowledge legitimacy of public administration can be resolved,the scientific status of public administration can be established,and the nightmare of identity crisis of public administration can be eliminated.