網絡治理與民主課責：監控民主下的理性選擇理論觀點

Network Governance and Democratic Accountability: A Rational Choice Theory Perspective via Overhead Democracy

由於二十一世紀政府獨佔社會資源的優勢不再、公共問題的跨域化與非常態化、以及公民社會的崛起，近十餘年公共行政學界在治理研究的風潮下，逐漸從傳統政府中心論以及新公共管理「市場機制」的焦點挪移開來，朝向所謂網絡治理的「新」模式前進；然而有趣的是，學界似乎獨鍾網絡治理的效率議題，對民主的面向則較為輕忽，導致網絡治理在公共治理理論版圖中，產生課責機制缺空的問題，甚至影響到治理的課責效能。本文從公共行政的監控民主傳統出發，強調網絡治理必須回到公共行政價值調和的傳統，面對網絡治理所可能引發民主治理的三個課責問題：缺乏涵容性、透明性、以及控制性的疑慮，將網絡治理的核心問題，從治理績效的角落，移回下列這個制度調和的核心：「治理機制要如何同時擁有網絡治理從下到上的自主性，又能滿足民主課責從上到下控制的需要？」。接著，本文為了回答這個課責機制的設計問題。本文先從定義上處理「網絡治理新在哪裡？」「網絡治理的定義為何？」以及「監控民主下網絡治理之民主課責的內涵為何？」等三個問題；再者，本文從理性選擇理論的角度提供一個一般性的網絡治理分析模型，從模型的框架中依照涵容性、透明性、與控制性等三個面向，討論在跨組織與跨部門的網絡中，要如何落實民主課責的價值，但又不會影響到網絡治理自主性效能的要求，並分別針對公共管理者的實務需求，提出建議。最後，本文的結論是：「政府不可能自外於網絡治理的公共性質，但是也應更加有技巧地設計其管制功能，維繫社會自主與民主課責兩種價值之間的平衡」。未來的相關研究可以在本文研究發現的基礎之上，導引出可以檢驗的假設，尋找適當的個案，以循證的經驗方法進行理論驗證的工作，以期能夠同時滿足公共行政學界與實務界的知識需求。

In the beginning of the twenty-first century, public administration faced a new wave of resource scarcity and lost its dominating role in public governance. Network governance emerged as the newest trend in the academic as well as practical field. However, it is interesting to note that network governance has been focusing on increasing efficiency rather than democratic accountability. In this theoretical paper, the author argues that network governance, whether efficient in societal solidarity, should be kept within the realm of overhead democracy to ensure the legitimacy of the networking process which lacks inclusion, transparency, and accountability. The key question to be answered in this article is, “how can we achieve good governance to reconcile the top-down overhead democratic accountability with the bottom-up network governing legitimacy?” The author answers three subsequent questions accordingly: What's new about network governance? How do we define the term “network governance”? What are the characteristics of accountable network governance? By using the rational choice theory for analytical purposes, the author reaches the following main conclusions. The government cannot afford to ignore the problem of transparency within network governance. Public servants should utilize their public authority to balance societal independence and democratic accountability. Further research should be evidence-based to satisfy the growing needs of creating both academic and practically sound solutions to social problems.