The object of this study is to assess administrative reforms and change from the point of view of theoretical administrative models of hierarchical (traditional) administration, New Public Management (NPM), and New Public Governance (NPG) in Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia. Normative models offer a critique of legacy administrative practices; their wholesale implementation is seldom practical or successful. Reforms framed as “modernization” in these countries over the past three decades have generally followed the principles of NPM. Although policy arguments for introducing elements of NPG can be observed in the studied cases, the paper argues that NPG’s rhetorical attractiveness for resolving perceived shortcomings of other models lacks specific implementation mechanisms that would be viable within the existing institutional framework of the studied countries. Factors, such as the relatively small size of Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia, and obvious benefits of EU integration, appear to have moderated reforms to a point that core institutional features have become stable, and are also similar among the three countries: the dominance of hierarchical administrative model with rigid separation of powers structure and strong courts that can adjudicate administrative decisions, with numerous NPM inspired “modernization” measures, including the introduction of various interactive public services. The paper’s findings support the idea that Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia are administrative systems that have stable core governance institutions, and national public administrations modernize various aspects of their operation by introducing elements of NPM and NPG within the executive, but not reviewing the basic setup of these institutions. From this point of view, the findings are in line with the assumptions of the normative model of Neo-Weberian State (NWS)

The article critically analyzes the relation of postmodernism and new public governance with regard to community development. The ethical ideals of the past in the period of postmodernism are extinct, and new ideals should replace them. However, the values of postmodern capitalism often do not allow them to be formed, not to talk about the fact that the very existence of the values in the postmodern period is questioned. The authors build some kind of bridge between the past communitarianism and contemporary sense of community in order to revive it. The authors are trying to answer the question why tribal marketing in its specific form as community is suitable for the new public governance. The authors answer that tribal marketing in its specific form as community is suitable for the new public governance due to its attitude towards community as active co- creators and due to the durability, historicism and immortality in the society provided by the brand and mobilization of its members in solving identity problems. Tribal market­ing in new public governance could also help to solve the problem of shortage of community motivation systems, by using socio-psychological factors and the pheno­menon of the competing tribes.

Straipsnyje analizuojamos Europos ir Lietuvos socialinės-politinės sąlygos kuriant gerovės valstybes. Teigiama, kad socialine-politine prasme pastebimi akivaizdūs poslinkiai iš „pasyvių“, tik į socialines išmokas orientuotų gerovės valstybių į įgalinančias, „aktyvią“ socialinę politiką propaguojančias gerovės valstybes. Tačiau neoliberalizmo puolimas, kuris tęsiasi jau kelis dešimtmečius tiek Vakaruose, tiek Rytų Europoje bei Lietuvoje, dažnai suponuoja tik gynybines pozicijas aktyvios socialinės politikos formavimo ir vykdymo atžvilgiu. Tokią nepalankią socialiniams procesams situaciją į palankesnę potencialiai galėtų pakeisti labiau tradicinės „kairiosios“ politikos vykdymas, tačiau tam nei Vakarų Europos, nei tuo labiau Lietuvos socialdemokratinės jėgos nėra pasiruošusios ir nusiteikusios. Susidaro paradoksali situacija, kai neatidėliotiniems socialiniams uždaviniams spręsti nėra tinkamų politinių jėgų, o į tarptautinių socialinę apsaugą reglamentuojančių institucijų rekomendacijas neatsižvelgiama arba atsižvelgiama tik iš dalies.

All the countries in the world, to a greater or smaller extent, experienced the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their economies in 2020–21. Due to the pandemic, Lithuania, like other co...

Research conducted on public administration in Lithuania covers various subjects related to different fields and activities within the public sector. However, most research focuses only on challenges associated with the civil service and local self-government in Lithuania. This research aims to define public administration research and improve understanding of the progress and trajectory of contemporary public sector research in Lithuania. The research methods include document analysis, qualitative descriptive approaches, and historical data analysis. Moreover, the triangulation method verifies research results by integrating data and observations from many sources. The research results found that in the development of public law in Lithuania, researchers in the field of Lithuanian public administration focused on the goals of government reform, civil service modernization, creative solutions, and trends and reforms in central and regional administration. They also concentrate on social policy procedures, improving public governance, and intelligent examination of public administration. Lithuanian authors also focus on improving public governance through the use of the concepts of cooperation, participation, and teamwork. The study of Lithuanian public administration is closely related to the evolution of traditional public administration, focusing on evaluating new public management practices and implementing various public management innovations in government sector organizations since the start of state restoration. Future directions of public administration research in Lithuania will focus on addressing the challenges faced by the public sector and society in other countries. These challenges include sustainable development, climate change, gender equality, and other contemporary issues that directly or indirectly impact the public sector.