ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the issues encompassed in the dual challenge by profiling each of the three roles—what it entails, what problems it may bring, and how managers might approach citizens in that role. First, public managers need to understand the nature of the publics that they face, including what those publics expect in the different roles they assume as citizen, customer, and partner. As the second and more difficult part of the challenge, public administrators need to know how to interact with the public in each of the different roles. Controversy persists among scholars and practitioners over how to view the public's role in public management. The public probably plays its most important role in public management when its members participate in decision making, joining with public managers in deliberating about the nature of public programs and their implementation. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
