Abstract

It is generally believed that public agencies are especially prone to goal displacement, but research has remained relatively limited. In this conceptual paper, we explore why and how goal displacement might affect public regulatory enforcement agencies. Central to our approach is an analysis of the ambiguity of enforcement goals, arguing that the ambiguity related to the evaluation of goal achievement makes enforcement agencies vulnerable for goal displacement. The underlying reason is that this type of ambiguity increases the risk of neglecting the complexities of enforcement goals. We specify three types of complexity neglect and describe their potential goal-displacement effects. We provide examples of goal-displacement-reinforcing factors to clarify conceptual notions. We conclude that in the absence of a sound tradition of ex-post effect evaluations, goal displacement might be much more prevalent in enforcement agencies than is often assumed.

摘要

人们普遍认为公共机构特别容易发生目标转移，但研究仍然相对有限。在这篇概念性论文中，我们探讨了目标转移为何以及如何影响公共监管执法机构。我们方法的核心是对执法目标模糊性的分析，认为与目标实现评估相关的模糊性使执法机构容易受到目标转移的影响。根本原因在于，这种类型的模糊性增加了忽视执法目标复杂性的风险。我们指定了三种类型的复杂性忽略并描述了它们潜在的目标位移效应。我们提供了目标位移强化因素的例子来澄清概念概念。