Conference Agenda

This study explores the portrayal of public administration in cinema across the US, the UK, and Continental Europe from the 1940s to the 2020s. By examining films that depict aspects of public services, the paper aims to understand how cinema reflects and critiques the cultural and institutional dimensions of public administration over time and across different national contexts.

The research employs a qualitative content analysis of selected films from each region and decade, focusing on narratives that center around public administration and public services. The selection criteria included films that are set within the respective countries, exclude foreign affairs or historical settings predating the 20th century, and have a significant focus on public administrative themes. The analysis of about 40 films draws upon sociological theories of film and cultural studies to interpret the representations and their implications.

The analysis reveals distinct thematic evolutions and regional differences. Across the examined period (1940s–2020s), cinematic depictions of public administration evolve from idealistic, sometimes comic or satirical portrayals of government and bureaucracy, to increasingly critical, complex, socially grounded reflections on institutional power, accountability, and citizen-state relations. Over time, public administration in film tracks broader political shifts — from post-war optimism to neoliberal disillusionment and fragmented legitimacy. The focus shifts from systems to people, from macro-political institutions to micro-level citizen experience. Films increasingly reflect and shape trust or distrust in public institutions, providing a valuable lens to assess public sentiment across geography and time.

The comparison across the United States, United Kingdom, and Continental Europe shows that each region developed a distinct cinematic grammar to represent the relationship between citizens and public administration. US films are broadly oriented towards the moral drama of the individual versus the system. Individual challengers are positioned against a flawed but redeemable system, typically through moral confrontation articulated via whistleblowing, legal advocacy, or journalistic investigation. The ideal of redemption is under strain in later decades, however, where institutional resistance to oversight persists. UK films focus on mundane frustrations and the quiet human costs of bureaucratic governance. British cinema emphasizes inertia, absurdity, and proceduralism — often with an undertone of melancholy. Rather than grand confrontation, drama is found in everyday interactions, like when citizens face an indifferent system. Small triumphs are celebrated (like a playground built or a welfare form approved), but systemic change is rare or fleeting. These narratives reflect a cultural realism — or cynicism — about reform. European cinema is more inclined to depict public administration as a structural force, embedded in regimes of control, surveillance, and ideological violence. While US and UK films often frame bureaucracy as frustrating but potentially responsive, European films highlight its dehumanizing and sometimes lethal consequences — portrayals shaped by histories of authoritarianism, war, and fragile democracies.

In sum, the analysis indicates profound questions that films – as expression of popular culture – pose about public administration, like: Can individuals maintain integrity within bureaucratic systems? Does bureaucracy inherently dehumanize public service? Who holds public institutions accountable when oversight fails?

This paper investigates the influence of ethical-religious values on corporate sustainability reporting, with a focus on water utilities operating in Italy and UK, countries historically shaped by Catholic and Protestant traditions, respectively. While sustainability reporting has become a crucial tool for enhancing transparency and responding to stakeholder expectations (De Villiers & Marques, 2016; Baldini et al., 2018), concerns persist regarding the authenticity of these disclosures (Delmas & Burbano, 2011), particularly in sectors like utilities that are closely tied to public service and complex environmental challenges (Imperiale et al., 2023). Despite growing interest in the role of ethics in sustainability communication (Fassin et al., 2011; Torelli, 2021), the impact of religiosity on the construction of corporate narratives and materiality analysis remains underexplored (Farooq et al., 2019; Terzani & Turzo, 2022).

The study is grounded in the Sociology of Worth (SOW) theoretical framework (Boltanski & Thévenot, 1991; 2006), which identifies multiple "worlds of value" through which actors justify decisions and actions. This lens is particularly suited to examine how Catholic and Protestant ethical principles inform the justificatory logics embedded in sustainability disclosures. SOW enables a shift from a descriptive to an interpretive approach, allowing for a deeper understanding of how organizations legitimize their priorities through culturally embedded value systems.

Methodologically, the paper adopts a qualitative content analysis, combining deductive coding of predefined sustainability themes with inductive thematic analysis to uncover latent narratives and legitimation strategies (Joffe, 2012; Braun et al., 2019). The empirical material consists of sustainability reports from water utilities in Italy and UK, selected for their role in managing public goods and addressing environmental externalities (Bresnihan, 2016; D’Amore et al., 2023). Reports are analysed to evaluate how ethical-religious values influence the selection of material topics, the framing of sustainability narratives, and the type of legitimacy pursued (symbolic vs. substantive).

The study addresses three research questions:

RQ1: How do Catholic and Protestant values shape sustainability narratives?

RQ2: What differences emerge in the material themes between Italian and UK water utilities?

RQ3: How do cultural values influence the type of legitimacy pursued?

This research contributes to literature on sustainability reporting and business ethics, offering a novel lens to interpret disclosure practices and emphasizing the need to integrate cultural and normative dimensions into corporate communication strategies.