Different strokes for different folks? The translation of public values into official meanings

Abstract

It is well known that the meanings of public values can vary significantly across different settings, given their abstract nature. Despite this knowledge, however, the public values literature has not significantly examined the official meanings of public values in their local setting. Against this backdrop, on the basis of a translation perspective we examine the context-specific meanings of 219 public values as defined by the core values statements of 61 Nordic central government agencies. We show variation and patterns in the meanings, emphasizing how the meanings vary depending on whether the values are translated into (1) a work and service delivery theme, (2) an internal relations theme and (3) an external relations theme. Through these findings, the study highlights the importance of taking into consideration the official meanings of agency core values for understanding the relationship between public values and administrative behaviour. Points for practitioners The findings from this study inform public managers and administrators of the possible variation in the official meanings that could be attributed to core values. They suggest that public managers should carefully consider how they want their agency's core values to be understood by the employees. Specifically, when translating core values, public managers are advised to assess whether the signifiers they use to translate the values should guide work and service delivery, internal relations or external relations, respectively, or a combination. By drawing attention to the intended meanings of core values, the findings create increased awareness of how different translations of core values implicate different administrative behaviours.