ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a clear understanding of the differences between organizations in the public and private sectors. It aims to identify the main characteristics of the instrumental and institutional perspectives in organization theory. A central issue is the links between public organizations and the content of public policy. The people who shape public policy normally act on behalf of formal organizations. The attention and focus of organization theory has been more on the private sector than on organizations in the public sector and ideas from economics tend to prevail at the expense of elements from political science. One exception to this pattern can be found in Scandinavia where research into public-sector organizations from an organization theory approach has been rather strong. Organizational research and its theoretical basis constitute an interdisciplinary field. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
