...Name Subject Date Public Administration Public administration is to implement law. In the American system, authority flows from the people to those they vote to govern them. While a legislature passes a law and an executive signs it, the law does not implement itself. That is the task the legislature delegates to the administrator, and it is this chain of authority, flowing from the people through elected institutions to the public administrator, that makes public administration distinctively public. Faithful execution of these laws is the highest calling of public administrators and the core of administrative accountability. The Nature of Knowledge in Public Administration Public administration refers to two distinguishable but intimately related activities: (1) a professional practice (profession, occupation, field of activity), and (2) an academic field which seeks to understand, extend, criticize, and improve that professional practice as well as to train individuals for that practice. The simple meaning of the term is quite direct: it refers on the one hand to the administration or management of matters which have mainly to do with the society, polity, and its subparts which are not fundamentally private, familial, commercial, or characteristic, and on the other hand to the well-organized study of such matters. In this simplest meaning, public administration has to do with supervision the realm of governmental and other public activities. This simple...
Words: 3843 - Pages: 16
...Public administration refers to the officials, institutions and processes involved with implementing the laws, rules and policies passed by legislatures and executive. It was originally a branch of political science, but public administration has developed into a field of study of its own during the 20th century, thanks in part to groundbreaking writings by early scholars in the field. These classic works laid the foundation for a new discipline that combines academic study with professional training for people interested in government careers. In public administration the organizational success largely depends on its structure and leadership. Over the years many theories have been developed regarding the structure of organizations. I will be focusing on Fredrick Taylor and Adam Smith. These theorists provided different models of organizational structural theories. Frederick Taylor was considered to be the father of modern efficiency model. Around early 1900's, he formalized the principles of Scientific Management and developed a set of ideas designed focusing on the individual to help maximize efficiency. His main idea was that every job could be done in a scientific method which maximizes profit. He also believed that workers are lazy and their rational thought made them maximize their own utility. Taylor states that Management and not workers are to develop a science for every job, which replaces the old rule of thumb method.(Diprete,1991) In order to do that,...
Words: 983 - Pages: 4
...Woodrow Wilson defines public administration as the detailed and systematic application of law. While another definition emphasizes policy execution, policy formation and administrative responsibility citing that the goal of administrative responsibility is to administer programs efficiently and ensure that both the process and its results are accountable to elected officials, and ultimately, to the people. My view, public administration is bureaucracy in action. It is the coordination and advancement of policies so that the government can function effectively. It is also concerned with government organization, the many officials, both elected and unelected, public servants and administrators to be formally responsible for their conduct and behavior while they sit in office, at all levels of government. Public Administration is the translation of politics into reality for the citizens to see. Nothing is more central in thinking about public administration than the nature and interrelation of politics and administration. There are a variety of modern empirical studies and research that public administration and politics will always be intertwined one way or another. Separating politics and administration is conceivable only to a certain extent, partly because governing politicians must, in some way, be able to develop an administrative mechanism to create the best possible conditions to ensure the effecting of policies. Appleby contended that it is impossible...
Words: 293 - Pages: 2
...Name Professor Course Class Date Public Administration Question 1 Heclo’s concept of Issue networks states that government policies emerge from an interaction of a large number of participants who have varied degree of dependence and commitment on each other. The issue networks is the opposite of the Iron triangle theory. According to (Stillman 408), the Iron triangle is the interaction among the elected members of Congress, career bureaucrats and the interest groups. The iron triangle proposes that policies are made when the Congress passes favorable legislations; which are to be implemented by the bureaucrats and then supported by the special interest groups. In the Issue networks, the primary interest of the participants is either emotional or intellectual. The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) was initially slated to feed malnourished school children whistle supporting the farmers. However, in the 1990s, the program was transformed to an initiative to promoting sound nutrition among the youth. This transformation process is what is referred to as “reinvention” (Stillman 410). To implement this program, there has to be interplay between political and technocratic interests. During the reinvention, several health and consumer advocates came out to support the change while some were against. The operation of this policy is a complex one involving several interest groups, consumer advocacy groups and professional associations. The system starts with the legislations...
Words: 2165 - Pages: 9
...1. IS THERE A PHILIPPINE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION? • YES, THERE IS!!! According to Alex Brillantes, Jr and Maricel Fernandez There is, as far as there are institutions of public administration addressing specific sectoral concerns. There is, as far as it is being a field of study is concerned. There is, considering the massive role of the bureaucracy in Philippine Public Administration. There is, when we consider its major institution in Education, Politics and Government. 2. WHAT PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION DOES PHILIPPINES HAVE? According to Alex Brillantes, Jr and Maricel Fernandez • Philippines have a basic public administration structure and processes. • Philippines have Executive branch with the bureaucracy at its core. • Philippines have Legislator • Philippines have Judiciary • Philippines have Electoral Process and Procedures • Philippine have sub-national institutions and local governments, together with decentralization processes and procedures. 3. EVOLUTION OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • Phases in the Evolution of Public Administration 1. Traditional/Classical Public Administration • It is old as ancient empires of China, India, Greece, Rome and Mesopotamia • According to Caiden (1982) o Public Administration existed in all societies o “public administration should not be considered administration of the public but administration for the public” o the genesis of Public Administration must have had originated from monarchial...
Words: 535 - Pages: 3
...Understanding of Public Administration Abstract The purpose of this paper, An Understanding of Public Administration, is to provide the reader with an overview of the field and its application towards public programs, agencies, groups and other associations. It also provides a clear definition, introduces some principles associated with public administration along and how it is used in American society. Public administration allows public policies and actions, decision-making ability and day to day operations of an agency to be executed effectively in our environment. The reader becomes familiar with the historical and social aspects pertaining to the evolving field. Public administration does not have a definite age of existence but has been recognized as reliable tool used to perform public service in the United States for the past century. Following the overview of public administration, an example of a public agency is illustrated to further acquaint the reader to the practice of public administration and how it operates to service the public. Table of Contents I. Introduction – Brief Overview of Public Administration II. Body A. Woodrow Wilson B. Principles behind Public Administration C. Public Administration in the United States D. Luther Gulick and Functions in Management E. POSDCORB III. Community Action Agency- Brief Overview IV. Conclusion V. Bibliography Introduction Public administration...
Words: 2577 - Pages: 11
...the events that lead up to the explosion. Martin states: “One hundred and eleven men were killed in that explosion. Killed needlessly, for almost everybody concerned had known for months, even years, that the mine was dangerous. Yet nobody had done anything effective about it” (Stillman 31). Initially, the thought and idea that a community would allow such a horrific event to occur that could have been prevented is terrifying and somewhat startling. Martin uses his case study to explore various questions regarding this mine disaster as well as the background and other potential issues surrounding the explosion. Purpose The overall goal of this case study is to place an emphasis on how dependent modern day society is on public administration to handle chaotic or unexpected situations. In exploring various aspects of this catastrophe, Martin explores the following: (1). A coal company sensitive only to profit incentives. (2). State regulatory agencies inadequately enforcing mine safety legislation. (3). Federal officials and mine unions complacent about a growing problem. (4). The miners incapable of protecting themselves against the impending disaster. Ultimately, “Modern society depends on the proper functioning of unseen administrative arrangements--- for safeguarding our environment; for protecting the purity of our food;...
Words: 271 - Pages: 2
...Dwight Waldo, 1913-2000 James D. Carroll; H. George Frederickson Public Administration Review, Vol. 61, No. 1. (Jan. - Feb., 2001), pp. 2-8. Stable URL: http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0033-3352%28200101%2F02%2961%3A1%3C2%3ADW1%3E2.0.CO%3B2-V Public Administration Review is currently published by American Society for Public Administration. Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/about/terms.html. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at http://www.jstor.org/journals/aspa.html. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. The JSTOR Archive is a trusted digital repository providing for long-term preservation and access to leading academic journals and scholarly literature from around the world. The Archive is supported by libraries, scholarly societies, publishers, and foundations. It is an initiative of JSTOR, a not-for-profit organization with a mission to help the scholarly community take advantage of advances in technology. For more...
Words: 6652 - Pages: 27
...Approaches of the public administration in: (a) The contemporary era Introduction The approaches to the study of Public administration in the contemporary era can be categorized from different angles such as normative approach and empirical approach. The main focus of these approaches is how public administration should be, and also to describe and to analyze the actual administrative situations. There different forms of public administration which are divide as follows; Philosophical approach Legal approach Historical approach Scientific approach Case Method Approach Institutional and Structural Approach Behavioral Approach Philosophical Approach The Philosophical approach takes within its purview all aspects of administrative activities. The main goal of this approach is to find out and enunciate the principles or ‘ideals’ underlying these activities. This is perhaps the oldest approach to public administration as of all other social sciences. Legal Approach This is a systematic approach which is formulated and it traces its ancestry to the European tradition of rooting Public administration in law. Public administration was considered to be a part of law, concentrating on legally prescribed structure and organization of Public authorities. Legal approach came into place at a time when the functions of the state were narrowly limited and simple in nature. The administrative law is an important branch of Public law which is conceived in quite broad terms to enable it...
Words: 1334 - Pages: 6
...An Understanding of Public Administration Master of Public Administration Program Modern Public Administration: Managing Public & Nonprofit Organizations PAD 500 Abstract The purpose of this paper, An Understanding of Public Administration, is to provide the reader with an overview of the field and its application towards public programs, agencies, groups and other associations. It also provides a clear definition, introduces some principles associated with public administration along and how it is used in American society. Public administration allows public policies and actions, decision-making ability and day to day operations of an agency to be executed effectively in our environment. The reader becomes familiar with the historical and social aspects pertaining to the evolving field. Public administration does not have a definite age of existence but has been recognized as reliable tool used to perform public service in the United States for the past century. Following the overview of public administration, an example of a public agency is illustrated to further acquaint the reader to the practice of public administration and how it operates to service the public. Table of Contents I. Introduction – Brief Overview of Public Administration II. Body A. Woodrow Wilson B. Principles behind Public Administration C. Public Administration in the United States ...
Words: 2582 - Pages: 11
...experience. In no time at all, bureaucracy came to mean failed government and just plain rude people. Sadly, bureaucracy became a mandatory punishment in the form of a sterile waiting room full of rubber-stamp worker bees that I was required by law to endure in order to drive, pay taxes vote and send mail. Surprisingly, even through a Bachelors degree in Political Science, I was never introduced to the idea that public administration was necessary in order for out government to function. The 9th edition of Managing the Public Sector by Grover Starling illuminated several blaring issues with my personal definition of public administration and bureaucracy. The very first of these inaccuracies is the definition of both. Starling defines public administration as “the process by which resources are marshaled and then used to cope with the problems facing a political community” (Starling pg 3). The most informative and thought-provoking aspect of the Starling text is the situational examples that are used to provide the reader with insight into the world of public administration. Specifically, Starling provides a transcript of a transportation...
Words: 574 - Pages: 3
...Spirituality and Public Administration ShaTara T. Ambler Columbia Southern University Public Administration Ethics 22 January 2016 Abstract When in the workplace there are a few things that people try not to discuss and religion or spirituality is one of those. It is often a touchy subject because of differing beliefs and opinions. Does spirituality help or hinder productivity in the workplace? Will someone that is spiritual be a better leader than someone who is not? I will explore two articles Spirituality and Public Service and In the Study of Leadership, Spirituality Is the Unexpected Elephant in the Room. I will show how the authors relate spirituality to leadership. They tend to sway to the opinion that spirituality is needed in the workplace and is effective in leadership. I will tell my opinion on the subject and how I feel spirituality relates to leadership in public administration. Spirituality and Public Administration When discussing great leadership traits, a lot of people do not use the word spiritual. You will hear words like charismatic, strong, leader and great work ethic. Those are the types of people you would want to lead an organization. Does it matter if they are spiritual or not? People will have differing opinions on that subject mostly depending on their own personal position on spirituality. A person that is spiritual is considered ethical and caring. So whether you are spiritual or not most people would want someone like that as...
Words: 1413 - Pages: 6
...Public administration is a study where the organization is regarded as a machine whose performance can be improved by carefully calibrating the various components into a smoothly operating whole (Raadschelders, 2003) Public administrators work behind the scenes in all aspects of the government system. Administrators are responsible for enacting most policy changes while achieving agency missions and providing public service in the heat of such political environments. Administrators are involved in both the formulation and implementation of public policy, and because policy decisions so profoundly influence who gets what, this involvement in policy inevitably involves administrators in politics (Starling, 2010). Understanding the political ramifications confronting elected officials in light of our bureaucratic processes and final recommendations is essential to accomplishing agency tasks and achieving success. It is simply not possible to approach a policy issue in American government without considering the leading political party behind the final decision or voting power. Public administrators frequently participate in the policymaking process. Chief executives rarely make decisions about issues that have not bubbled up from the echelons of planners just above the career administrators and just below the political appointees of the cabinet and subcabinet (Starling,2010) The entire population of the US are the customers of the government. The purpose of government is to...
Words: 316 - Pages: 2
...Subject: Theories of Public Administration (PA 4001) Schedule: 8-11am Sat Instructor: Atty. Cyril Bryan Dosdos Cuizon MPA CRITIQUE ON: The article, “Is there a Philippine Public Administration” by: Alex Brillantes Jr. and Maricel Fernandez I cannot see the author’s black and white answer for the title of their article since it only points out the undertakings and management of the Philippine Government and Civil Society. If I were to answer the question, I would say, “Yes, there is, obviously.” We have the government structure with parts working together as whole for the benefit of everyone. Someone said, ”When there is government there is public administration.” I agree to that thought. Because public administration as defined, “ refers to the people (beaurocrats) running the people or people running the management(government). The authors also asked, “For whom is public administration?” Yes, why complicate things? Isn’t it from the word itself? It involves the public. Technically, it involves the people in government. However, the government’s aim is to service the people. Thus, benefits people or private society with regards to the efficiency of the administration and management of the government . It’s like going in circles. Another question raised was, “Is public administration relevant?” Yes, indeed. We need a tool for the government’s performance. It's for the benefit of the public managers and the general public as well. It's not...
Words: 368 - Pages: 2
...RETHINKING THE IDENTITY OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: INTERDISCIPLINARY REFLECTIONS The world of government and public administration has traveled far since the early days of its struggle for disciplinary independence. Lately, there has been talk of the advent of a new spirit in the public sector, or at least expectations of its coming. Some say that such a spirit is already here. Others aver we are witnessing only the tip of change. The world wide globalization process supported by stronger orientations towards open markets, open highways of information, growing levels of organizational learning and interdisciplinarity in the social sciences have also made their impact on the study of our bureaucracies. Yet by all definitions public administration in the beginning of the 2000s still lacks the sense of identity that other fields of the social sciences has long since obtained. In other words, the Have you looked outside lately at the world of government and administration? Have you noticed a strange scent in the air indicating the arrival of a new spirit in the public sector? Some people say it is already here. Others say we have only witnessed the edge of the change. Yet by all definitions public administration at the beginning of the 2000s is looking for its way forward. Today, it is already much different from what it used to be forty, thirty, and even twenty or ten years ago. In the coming years it is going to be even more different. field is looking back and down into its...
Words: 1168 - Pages: 5
