Accountability in outsourced public service delivery: an Australian study
研究了澳大利亚养老体系中外包如何塑造问责架构及其对服务结果的影响，发现非营利组织侧重合规报告而忽视结果问责，建议整合结果导向的绩效监控机制。
We examine Australia’s aged care system to understand how the accountability architecture was shaped by outsourcing and explore the resulting implications for service outcomes. We conceptualize quality service provision as a boundary object – i.e. an idea, information, or other mechanism of governance – shared by stakeholders potentially with differing meanings across sites. We highlight NFPs’ emphasis on regular reporting with a compliance focus and muted outcome-based accountability. This accountability deficit was masked by the multi-layered principal–agent relationships. The study suggests the need for integrating outcome-based performance monitoring mechanisms of the state with those of outsourced service sites.