公共行政研究的定量推崇批判

Rethinking of Quantitative Research in the Study of Public Administration

研究方法的选择一直都是科学研究的重点。在公共行政领域,定量研究越来越受到推崇,但将其作为公共行政的主要研究方法并不适合。从公共行政研究的历史演变来看,定量研究虽然显赫一时,但是逐渐受到人们的质疑。定性研究而不是定量研究应该是公共行政的主要研究方法,有三个方面可以加以证明:公共行政中模糊与精确的共存状态;非理性与理性的不可分割性;定量分析自身的缺陷。

The choice of research method is the keystone for scientific study.In the realm of public administration, more and more people consider that quantitative research is the most important research method.But in fact, quantitative research cannot be used as the main research method.Though quantitative research has served as an important research method in the history of public administration, now people begin to have doubt for it.This paper proves that qualitative research, instead of quantitative research, should become the main research method for public administration from three aspects: the co-existence of accurateness and indistinctness in public administration, the unbreakableness of rationality and irrationality, and the drawback of quantitative research itself.