Negative Political Feedback or the Auditor”s Tar Baby? Comments on “An Examination of the Problem of Modelling Political Responses in Public Sector Effectiveness Auditing”

A response to Smith′s (1992) attempt (in AAAJ , Vol. 5 No. 1, 1992) to address the difficulties in performance auditing and production function modelling in public sector management (arguing that regression analysis is an inadequate approach for value‐for‐money auditors, and is fundamentally flawed in failing to account for the anticipatory adjustments to the system made by politically motivated administrators). Agrees with Smith that quantitative effectiveness audit has limited value in the wider context of public sector accountability. Raises a number of issues concerning Smith′s data and analysis and his bases for dismissing this approach to effectiveness audit.