Abstract
Local government systems are usually perceived as independent variables when considering (possible) differences in recruitment patterns, professionalisation, the position of mayors in local and multi-level governance arrangements (or horizontal and vertical policy networks), the interpretation (or notion) of democracy, problem definition as well as attitudes and opinions towards decentralisation or centralisation and reforms (‘modernisation’) of the public sector (‘new public management’). However, a decision on the most suitable conceptualisation or typology of local government systems for joint research such as that undertaken here is more problematic than might be assumed: firstly, a lot of typologies are available in the scholarly debate, and secondly, it proves difficult to apply the available typologies because none of them cover the whole spectrum of countries included in this study, and many do not include the ‘new democracies’ in Middle-Eastern Europe. Therefore, existing typologies will necessarily have to be adjusted and updated.
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Heinelt, H., Hlepas, NK. (2006). Typologies of Local Government Systems. In: Bäck, H., Heinelt, H., Magnier, A. (eds) The European Mayor. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-531-90005-6_2
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