Catastrophe theory as a paradigm for development administration

Catastrophe theory, a field of applied mathematics developed by Rene Thom and others in the 1970s, offers some promise as a paradigm for the study of developmental administration. The dynamic and qualitative nature of this approach can lead to various insights that some current and previous models lacked.

The application of catastrophe theory to the political situation in Malaysia in the early 1960s demonstrates how such a theoretical approach can be fitted to specific political systems and situations.

The author concludes by suggesting other national political settings where catastrophe theory might be fruitfully applied in the study of development and comparative administration.     

Public administration in Marshall Dimock's textbooks

This article examines the relationship between Marshall Dimock's positive, broad-based concept of public administration and his approach to writing undergraduate textbooks. Analysis shows that both Dimock's American government and public administration textbooks provide a different slant on public agencies than that available in most current introductory volumes. In particular, his American government textbook is more positive in tone about agencies than are its modern counterparts. The public administration textbook has comparative material that rarely appears in introductory-level textbooks.

This article analyzes how Marshall Dimock's conception of public administration as an important area of study with links to policy and leadership anchored his textbook writing. In the 1950s Dimock co-authored two popular textbooks for basic undergraduate courses, one in American government and the other in public administration.⁽¹⁾

Scholars still debate what textbooks in either field should teach students about public agencies. Cigler and Neiswender argue that current American government textbooks portray administration in a negative light. All authors see bureaucracy as a problem of some sort, few explain the role administrators play in shaping policy and none discuss reasons to enter the public service.⁽²⁾ Cigler and Neiswender suggest that American government textbooks must change to aid accurate perceptions of the administrative role. In particular, they believe the texts must add material on the public service as a profession and compare American agencies with those in other nations.

Since public administration textbooks are a key way that majors in the field learn material, debate ensues on what material they should contain. Recent articles explore how textbooks define key terms such as policy and how they integrate the work of various theorists.⁽³⁾

While all widely-used textbooks deal with both the political environment and internal agency functions (e.g., personnel, finance), no consensus exists on how to allocate space between political and managerial concerns nor on exactly which subtopics should be covered. No consensus exists on how much space should be devoted to policy making and policy analysis with some textbooks covering this topic and others skimming it lightly.

One often cited problem with contemporary texts is the lack of a comparative focus and a concomitant need to internationalize the curriculum.⁽⁴⁾ The thrust of current proposals is that students need a more broad-based education to prepare them for global leadership.

Interestingly, Dimock's approach to public administration led him to write textbooks that in some ways surpass what is available today. While the majority of the topics he presents (and their ordering) are similar to current efforts, he offers unique emphases that deal with the above mentioned criticisms. Far from being an exercise in academic nostalgia, examining Dimock's textbooks is a useful way of giving current writers new insights.

To appreciate Dimock's approach to textbook construction we first have to identify the core concepts behind his approach to public administration education. Afterwards, we can analyze the treatment of public agencies in American Government in Action, relating it to Cigler and Neiswender's critique of contemporary textbooks, and -examine how various editions of Public Administration conceptualize the field.     

Comparative administration: theory and experience

In order to determine the extent to which regional training in management would serve their own diverse national needs, nine African countries with different colonial, economic. political, and economic traditions sponsored a large-scale restarch project .to identify. common behavioral characteristics in the vublic, private. and amstatal sectors. The theory was that if there was a sufficient body of ;cbuind.thtoighout the region, it would be possible to adopt standard training and selection procedures and use similar approaches in improving organizational designs. The theory posited further that comparative studies conducted in sufficient depth could separate the unique from the common elements of managerial behavior and contribute to the desirn of national as well as reeional training systems. Studies conducted with these ends in mind were also expected distinguish between behavioral differences that were associated with the political and cultural context or organizational setting, and those reflecting individual characteristics. The study proceded by gathering reports of “management events” that reflected both “effective” and “ineffective” behavior on the part of administrators in the public, private, and “semi-public” sectors, including government agencies, large industrial corporations, and parastatals or public enterprises. When nearly 2,000 such events wen coded, it became possible to identify Ntecn clearly distinguishable skills that ranked at the top in frequency of use in all threz sectors. In the African context, it was hund certain skills such as the motivation of employees, the interpretation and avvlication of conventional rules and remhtions involving honnel-administration; -and interpasonal skills were more inportant than technical knowledge or the general administrative techniques commonlv taught in academic curricula. The intensity with which these skills an used, however, was found to be different across countries. Motivational issues an involved much mare frequently in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, and Zambia, for example, than in Tanzania ar Angola Writing skills headed the list in Tanzania but no other country. In the private sector, tcchnical skills were more in demand than motivational skills. Knowledge of procedures was far more important in the public than the parastatal or private sectors. When the results were coded by level of management, however, the dominance of motivational issues was universal. On the other hand, senior managers wae more concerned with negotiations and financial management than were their junior colleagues. Among the general skills least frequently encounted were impact analysis and evaluation, program analysis, computational skills, economic analysis, and Community relations. Among all skills coded in the sample, the worst perfonname was in the field of bureaucratic politics, in which 97% of the incidents were presented as examples of “ineffective performance.” These mults con- the possibility of identifying a common core of skills required by private and public managers, but they also suggest the need for careful adaptation of curricula to emphasize known organizational and national contexts, and they suggest as well a wcedure that can be followed m designing such adaptations. They do not confirm the expectation that private managers are better motivated than public administrators in the African context or that their personal qualities are vay different The major differences appear to be in the technical requirements of their positions, including accounting and writine skills. An isnuortarit caution needs to be observed in the application of the techniiue used in this study: the data do not disclose what skills might have improved performance if they had been present, and they do not predict future needs.     

Public administration and the rule of law

This article deals with the enduring problem of administrative discretion in the modern American democratic-constitutional state. In the American constitutional tradition, administrative action is legitimate when and only if it adheres to the rule of law. This implies that administrators must be able to link directly their actions to grants of authority in statutes or the Constitution. But the growth of the state apparatus and the increasing intensification of the public administration's role in society have necessitated rather broad legislative grants of discretion to the bureaucracy. The result has been a seemingly perennial tension between the rule of law ideal and the modern administrative reality.

Attempts to control discretion via evolving doctrines of administrative law have proved unsatisfactory for a variety of reasons explored in this essay. The most important shortfall has been that the continuing expansion of the administrative state threatens directly the rule of law itself. After a survey of the weaknesses of these doctrines, we conclude that the rule of law is fundamentally incompatible with the necessary work of administration in the modern American state. Administrative discretion is thus seen to pose an intractable problem for the liberal democratic society, which accounts for its problematic persistence.     

Exploring agency as a basis for ethical theory in American public administration

This articale argues that agency, the normative theory associated with the “acting for” relationship in society, has had a profound, but often unrecognized affect on ethics in public administration. Accordingly, it seeks to provide a brief review of agency theory as it applies to contemporary American public adminis- tration. The review provides an overview of agency theory, gives an example of how deeply it influences American public administration, shows how it facilitates ethical action in administration and reviews some of the major obstacles to employing agency theory in the modern American administrative state.     

The romantic vision in american administrative theory: Retrospectives and prospectives

The 1980s witnessed an explosion of new theoretical approaches for public administration. This essay explores the intellectual basis and orientation of several of these “new” approaches. It argues that many share distinctly common outlooks and values which the author terms, “a romantic vision” for the field, that is opposite to rational “classicalism.” This current wave of romantic philosophy mainly has historic roots in the Minnow brook perspectives of the late 1960s and early 1970s but “flowers” today in quite diverse schools under new names such as critical theory, phenomenology, new public administration and many others. All share common romantic values and outlooks. Several intellectual dilemmas for public administration posed by the rise of romanticism are outlines in this essay.     

Public administration in hong kong: Crises and prospects

Current studies on Hong Kong public administration have overlooked three emerging crises of the administrative system -- the crises of mediocrity, the public service, and the metapolicy -- which may result in a complete collapse of the colonial regime. The analysis reveals the following. Firstly, operating within a paradoxical context, civil servants find it difficult to maximize their contribution. Hard pressed by the delimma of “to strive for excellence or to observe medicoirty,” many choose the latter. Thus, the overall performance of many Hong Kong public agencies and civil servants is unacceptable. Secondly, at the absence of a political theory which redefines the relationship between the political system and socio-economic system and thus the mission of the public service, many civil servants lack commitment to the public service and therefore the norm of medicority is reinforced. And thirdly, the government has reformulated its metapolicy in a way that system overloading is likely, thus making Citizen insubordination probable. It is conclusded that the future of Hong Kong is bleak and that remedial actions are awaiting: the first task is the quest for a new set of political ideology and public philosohgy; the next is reformulation of a new metapolicy, followed by forceful pulbic sector management reform.     

Public administration,executive power,and constitutional confusion

This article examines the ambiguity in the meaning of executive power in both the text of the U.S. Constitution and in subsequent judicial interpretations. This ambiguity has had a profound impact on the constitutional position of the public administration. In the recent independent counsel case, the U.S. Supreme Court offered a restrictive interpretation of the President's constitutional powers to remove subordinate officers. This new interpretation could lead to increased congressional control over administrative agencies.

The proper place and function of the public administration, unfortunately for the public administration, have been and remain inherently ambiguous because of the longstanding confusion about executive power in the Constitution of the United States. Richard Neustadt captured this ambiguity nicely when he noted that the two great themes that have characterized the American presidency have been “clerkship” and “leadership.”⁽¹⁾ There is no easy formula to bring clerks and leaders together to make them march in lock-step, and yet the President is clearly both. Today we may tend to emphasize his role as leader with imperial pretensions and Nixonian excesses still relatively fresh in our memories, but this is only a question of emphasis. No one denies that the President is a legally accountable officer who must do the bidding of the Congress. This is the clerkship side of the presidency.

Herbert Storing counsels against any effort to cut the Gordian knot and to try to determine once and for all just what it is our President is supposed to be: clerk or leader. “The beginning of wisdom about the American presidency,” Storing maintains, “is to see that it contains both principles and to reflect on their complex and subtle relation.”⁽²⁾ Following Storing's advice, this essay reflects on the inherent ambiguity of the executive power that provides the constitutional foundation of the public administration. First, we examine the text of the Constitution and the meaning of executive power at the time of the founding. Then we study the confusion that the Supreme Court has created in its efforts to draw practical conclusions for presidential personnel management from the constitutional grant of “the executive power” to the President in relation to the removal power. Third, we examine some of the recent problems of executive power that surfaced in Watergate and became salient in the important constitutional debate over the special prosecutors, those most unwelcome intruders into the inner precincts of the Reagan administration.     

Public administration implications of the north american free trade agreement

The emerging North American trade bloc presents both challenges and opportunities for Mexico, Canada, and the United States. Free trade among disparate partners is a complex undertaking. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will bring important benefits to all three countries, but it will also raise many important issues. The sharp differences in wage rates, worker productivity, and education levels among the partners has fueled fears of job losses on both sides of the border. Disparity among NAFTA nations on labor practices, health and occupational safety laws and regulations are also sources of conflict. Effective dispute resolution mechanisms must exist for both the trade and non-trade issues. Practical guidance, in this regard, can come from the experience of the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) and the European Economic Community (EEC; European Union since 1993). New political and administration mechanisms will be required to deal with each of these challenging issues.     

In search of identity: Public administration education in taiwan

Education program plays an important part in transmitting public administration knowledge to future administrators. What constitutes the “core” knowledge is presumably determined by societal expectations. Using Public Administration education in Taiwan as an example, this study finds that there exists a “crisis of identity” which concerns the proper role of administrators -- generalists vs. specialists. Public Administration education program in Taiwan, oriented toward a liberal arts education, has failed, according to some, to provide well trained and qualified students for the public services. The current education programs have resulted in a disjointed process in which the diffusion of public administration knowledge is discontinuous.     

Public official associations and public administration: A shared history

This essay focuses on the development of public official associations—those organizations that represent the interests of incumbent public officials in public affairs and their sense of the public interest—as a way to illustrate major issues of professionalism and intergovernmental management. Associations are seen as vehicles for linking an otherwise fragmented federal system and profession. Concentrating on the groups representing general government officials, efforts to make public official associations financially secure, intellectually stimulating, and influential in policy formulation will be reviewed from 1891 to 1940. An understanding of the history of Public Administration is incomplete without recognizing that the early development of the field was based on the logic of reform, a central feature of which was an alliance of nongovernmental associations dedicated to the public good.     

Public administration and the constitutional bicentennial: An essay on research

The forthcoming centennial of American Public Administration falls in the same year as the bicentennial of the Constitution. This co-incidence suggests the propriety of examining the constitutional origins of the profession of Public Administration. This article notes the clash between the “two cultures” of administration and constitutionalism, proposes reasons for serious research into the constitutional foundations of contemporary administration, and provides several examples of suitable questions for this research.     

Public administration and policymaking: The political/career executive environment

Federal government policymaking is improved by the partici-pation of career executives. As a minimum, contributions based on their professional expertise and institutional experience can serve as an early warning system for helping political executives to avoid mistakes in new policy ventures. However, a number of political, structural, and attitudinal factors cause the political/career executive relationship environment to be characteristically stressful, tense, and frequently not conducive to joint involvement in policymaking. Historic factors producing this environment include basic constitutional and democratic values regarding the exercise of unitary power, the ambiguous roles of political and career executives, the controversial executive workforce structure, and the differing orientations of career and non-career executives. More recent obstacles to developing a cooperative state of political/career relations consist of the rise of the administrative presidency accompanied by bureaucrat-bashing, an increased politicization of management, and the trend toward ideological administration. What has been termed the “quiet crisis” in public service has led to calls for change in presidential rhetoric, development of orientation and communication opportunities in the political/career relationship, and proposals of structural alternatives to the present executive workforce system established in 1978. The Bush administration has implemented several measures leading to a renewed recognition of the benefits to policymaking output of career executive involvement.     

Public administration and public policy: old perspectives,new directions

Public administration has rather studiously avoided serious consideration of its ties to public policy throughout most of this century. The politics/administration dichotomy leaves a lasting legacy. Policy has a central place in the ongoing effort to explain what public administration is and how it functions. Policy defines the purpose of agencies, stipulates much of the detail about their organization, provides authority and legitimacy, and makes them important -- probably the most important--instruments of policy effectuation and evaluation. Public administration has traditionally displayed an interest in management; it has been studied, taught, and practiced as method, “how to.” This instrumentalist orientation has addressed successively different perspectives, all subsumed within the rubric of public administration. The first of these emphasized administrative reform, followed by an interest in scientific management. These left a legacy that largely treated administration as an end in itself, divorced from matters of policy. Further developments during the depression and post-war years gave prominence to human relations and decisionmaking. These newer orientations emphasized public administration's non-involvement with policy, although decisionmaking proved less inward-oriented and contributed some methodological insights for better understanding policy's ties to public administration. Decisionmaking's preoccupation with unifunctional organizations accountable to a single power center has proved a formidable obstacle to empirical investigations of policy/administration ties, however. This dilemma calls for new perspectives from which to study these ties; one promising perspective is the examination of administrative involvement in successive stages of the policy process.     

Public Administration Research in Norway: Organization theory, institutionalism and empirical studies in a democratic context

This article gives a broad overview of Norwegian research on public administration over the past 40 years. The main picture that emerges is that a Norwegian public administration built primarily on Webernian principles has lost some but not all these original properties. It describes a research tradition based on organizational theory and democratic theory. It also paints a picture of public administration as integrated into a complex network of domestic political institutions, public agencies, organized interests and clients, as well as extensive European and international networks. It shows how a strong theoretical tradition, based on bounded rationality, is supplemented by different types of institutional theories and increased theoretical pluralism. Finally, the paper underlines the importance of considering public administration not simply from an internal technical viewpoint, but of placing the discipline in a wider political and democratic context.