From hard to soft power

This chapter explores the conditions for soft power to deliver the desired results and the need to combine soft and hard power in the exercise of smart power. First, it discusses the use of hard power in public governance and administration. Next, it accounts for the emergence of the notion of soft power in International Relations (IR) theory and then proceeds to discuss the changing face of public governance and the growing importance of soft power. Drawing on Foucault’s governmentality theory (Foucault, 1991) and the dual notions of “technologies of agency” and “technologies of performance,” it scrutinizes how public health campaigns mobilize citizens as active and self-responsible agents who are caring for their own health by behaving in accordance with public standards for healthy living. This analysis is followed by a study of crime prevention that illustrates how soft and hard power can be combined in the exercise of smart power. The conclusion reflects on the future research on hard, soft and smart power in the field of public administration and governance.