Croft Commentary

INTRODUCTION Civic groups have always been involved in the public policy process in the United States. The rights to assemble and petition one's government are protected in the bill of rights for this very purpose. The framers knew the importance and impact that an organized group of citizens, like themselves, could have on public policy and governance. The methods and structures of public administration have changed over time with the advancement of new technologies, and so too has the involvement of civic groups. This paper will discuss the three primary paradigms in which civic group involvement has been viewed in the study of public administration: the New Public Service model as advocated by Denhardt and Dendhardt, the traditional or Wilsonian model, and the New Public Management model as advocated by Goldsmith and Eggers. The New Public Service model, as discussed by Dendhardt and Dendhardt (2007), focuses on the use of dialogue between public administrators and the pub...