Mailloux D, Lacharité C. Beyond new public management: Empowering community-based organisations.
JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY 2020;
48:2571-2588. [PMID:
32845049 DOI:
10.1002/jcop.22435]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2020] [Revised: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
AIMS
To describe how new public management practices, a global public service management trend, and a provincial community of practice, a group of people who learn from each other by interacting on an ongoing basis, affected a group of 240 community-based organisations.
METHODS
We conducted a holistic single case study of 240 grassroots, community-based organisations called Family Resource Centres in the province of Québec, Canada. Data was collected from 36 research interviews, 6 years of participant observation, institutional documents and a research journal, and analysed qualitatively.
RESULTS
New public management practices foster social injustice and endanger the integrity of the community-based organisations, whereas the provincial community of practice empowered them to fight back deleterious new public management practices and reclaim their identity.
CONCLUSION
A provincial community of practice allowed 240 independent community-based organisations in Québec, Canada to become empowered on a macro level while remaining faithful to their small scale community orientation. We hope this model can serve as an example of alternatives to current (new public) management practices.
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