The illiberal transformation of government bureaucracies : Patterns and dynamics

Boda, Zsolt ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6579-9069 and Hajnal, György ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6624-4639 (2025) The illiberal transformation of government bureaucracies : Patterns and dynamics. Public Policy and Administration . DOI 10.1177/09520767251365998

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/09520767251365998

Abstract

Emerging experience on the illiberal transformation of central government bureaucracy suggests that it is not a one-way street leading to a new equilibrium. The paper examines this dynamic and links it to existing scholarship on organizational change and administration. Firstly, we develop an improved descriptive-analytical frameworks grasping that transformation. Secondly, we examine a case of illiberal transformation, Hungary, to explore the patterns of underlying dynamics and compare them with expectations derived from theories of organizational change in bureaucracies. Based on depth interviews with key informants the paper identifies temporal patterns such as consecutive waves, reversals and delayed responses.

Item Type:

Article

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Central government bureaucracy, Hungary, illiberal reforms, temporal change

Divisions:

Institute of Social and Political Sciences

Subjects:

Public administration
Political science

DOI:

10.1177/09520767251365998

ID Code:

11777