Approaching governance and its theoretical dilemmas

Abstract

The present paper is a theoretical study of governance, through a thorough examination of the extensive literature regarding the different approaches that were developed world-wide. During the last decades there has been a shift from traditional modes of "government" to modes of "governance" that need to be more flexible, that recognize the complex nature of policy formulation and decision-making processes and incorporate a variety of social and economic actors into these processes. This debate has led to arguments and research regarding the transformation of the government"s role and the emergence of new modes of power, as well as of different models of government/governance under the scope of policy networks, rescaling and community involvement. The paper argues that governance is an issue which cannot be considered regardless of the traditions and cultural contexts that exist in a certain place. The basic assumption of the paper is that the elements of "good" governance, as developed throughout the international literature, at the same time constitute problems or dilemmas for governance.