Microbrook, Mesobrook, Macrobrook

Abstract This article assesses the field of public administration from a conceptual and methodological perspective. We urge public administration scholars to resolve the ambiguities that mire our scholarship due to the inadequate treatment of levels of analysis in our research. Overall, we encourage methodological accountability through a more explicit characterization of one’s research by the level of analysis to which it relates. We argue that this particular form of accountability is critical for effective problem solving for advancing theory and practice.