THE DISCIPLINE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
Public administration like any other discipline passed
several phase and historical profound that makes the modern public administration
we have today. These movements of public administration covered the
administrative structures, academic debate and the nature of state in relation
with citizens. It is public administration through which the government performs
its purpose. From time memorial government have struggled to serve the interest
of the community, to take an account of the Ancient civilization in Egypt and
China the king had provided services to citizens through king’s servants/administration
To have good modality in discussion our presentation
shall have four major parts that is introduction covers definition, scope and
nature of public administration, second part is historical development of
public administration. Part three and four shall cover the future of public
administration as the discipline as well as conclusion of the discussion.
WHAT IS PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION?
Public administration is defined as both an activity of
the government and as a discipline of study. Public administration as an
activity entails what administrators do in their day to day activity including
implementation of public policy, coordinating of government laws and
supervision of the government rules, administration of state finance,
administering human resources and other activities related to executive branch.
Public administration as a discipline of study covers theories, principles and
methodologies that public servant study. It involves what the students and practioners
of administration study.
Scholars and students of public administration have
provided several definitions in regard to public administration Nnoli Okwudiba
in his book “introduction to politics”
define public administration as the machinery as well as an integral part of
the government through which the government performs its functions. In elaborating his definition Nnoli explained
that administration is the network of human relationships and associated
activities from the lowest paid and powerless individuals with keeping in touch
with resources natural and human and all other aspect of human life of the
society.
Percy McQueen defined public administration as
administration related to the operation of the government whether local or
central.
Luther Gullick also defined public administration as a
part of science which has to do with the government and concern itself primary
with executive branch of the government, where the work of the government is
done.
Looking at these definitions offered by these scholars,
some important issues come in one is the locus of public administration and
focus of public administration. Public administration has a locus in executive
branch of the government and its focus is in the government activities for public services. Second issues are that
according to these definitions then public administration is an integrated activity of the government
that involves the implementation of government affairs. And these activities
are integrated from local to central government and vice verse.
Despite the fact that Luther Gullick mentioned science in
his definition but all these definition did not offer as to whether public
administration is a discipline of study but merely an activity of the government.
To harmonize the debate over the definition of public administration then, this
definition can serve that public administration is the machinery of the
government in which it perform its activities as well as discipline of study in
which public servants are trained to practice or carry day to day activities of
the government.
SCOPE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
The scope of public administration covers what
administrators do in their day to day functions and what do they study. It
covers issues of public policy, budgeting and planning state affairs and other
issues associated with executive branch from the local level to upper level of
the government. On the other hand the POSDCORD approaches offered by Luther
Gullick explain the scope of public administration in managerial view. To take
Woodrow‘s argument on administration as the government in action, then the scope
of administration (public administration) is found with the government
activities boundaries.
NATURE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
There two common views in explaining the nature of public
administration these are integral views and managerial views. Integral views is
more holistic in explaining the nature of the government, it view the
government as the all activities of the government from the local levels to
central levels of government. Some scholars like Prof. L.D. White adopted this
view in explaining the nature of public administration, to him administration
consist of all operations having for their purpose the fulfillment of or
enforcement of public policy. Also Biju Gayu (2011) in his lecture on “public administration meaning nature and scope” put
it clear that these activities include not only managerial and technical but
also manual and clerical activities.
On the other hand managerial views on the nature of
public administration locate public administration in the upper levels of
government charged only with managerial activities including planning and
supervisory roles. This approach fits much in Gullick’s definition of
administration as “to let things done”. Managerial views of public
administration in its sense limit the meaning of public administration as it
de-associate it with the functions coordinated and done by the public servant
at the local levels.
EVOLUTION OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AS AN ACTIVITY AND A
DISCIPLINE OF STUDY.
Public administration as an activity existed earlier with
the emergence of government and human activity in Africa (Egypt), Asia (Ancient
China) and Europe in countries like Greek, Rome and Medieval Europe. In Egypt public administration was found in
irrigation scheme of the Nile Valley, and the construction of Egyptian pyramid,
the king used his servants to administer the activities in those areas. In
Ancient China during the Han Dynasty (206 BC- 220 AD) public administration
were claimed to exist in Confucius sense. Confucius argued that the conduct of
the government shall hold the means. Laurence
E L in his chapter on “public management;
a concise history of the field” quoted Confucius statement that:
The government conduct must hold the means –
that means to approach problems by seeking opinions and by making the most
careful study of fact, in the spirit of absolute impartially and logically in
accordance with best ethical rule.
In Europe administration was practiced in several parts
of Europe like Greek by Greek king, Rome and other early traditional regimes in
Europe. But the practices of
administration in all these areas shared similar characteristics of
personalization and patronage. Administration was personalized to the hand of
the king instead of impersonality, and it was tied with loyalty to the king.
The appointment and recruitment depend on either loyalty to the king or blood
relation with king’s family. It was at this period were administration served
the interest of the individual king or queen.
Again in this period administration was equated with
government there were no separation of other branches of government but all
were in government. And it this history that led to Wilson Woodrow’s argument
that administration is old as government.
Despite this history public administration as “the field
of study” had not given attention up to the advent of Wilson Woodrow‘s writing
on “the study of public administration”
late 19th century. Wilson put it that no one wrote systematically of
administration as the branch of science of government until the present century
had passed its first youth and had began to put forth its characteristic flower
of systematic knowledge”
Apart from Woodrow’s advent in the early 17th
c and the late 18th century America and European countries
experienced institutional changes both political and constitutional changes. As
Christopher Hood in Ferlie E, Lynn L and Pollit C (2005) argued that “no
administrative system is isolated from the institutional framework in which it operates”.
Therefore these changes had remarkable impact in administration shape and
practices in America and Europe. In 1776 America attained independence and
brought in liberal constitutional and on the other hand European countries like
France experienced revolution in 1789 which toppled out the absolute rule of
the king. These two changes brought two major things one is the end of kingly
administration and the second is the liberation of administration from persolization
to impersonality.
These changes also brought in, the attention of scholars
to study public administration as the discipline of study. By doing so the
following evolution of public administration as the discipline guided the
debate. These include
Ø Politics/administration dichotomy 1880s-1900s
Ø Principles of management 1920s-1930s
Ø Public administration as political science
Ø Public management
Ø New public management
POLITICS/ADMINISTRATION DICHOTOMY 1880S-1900s
This was the first phase of the study of public
administration as the discipline of study, the phase was highly influenced by
Wilson Woodrow in his work “the study of public administration” and Frank
Goodnow who championed the thought by looking at political system. Wilson
Woodrow thought that administration had to be distinguished from politics. He
distinguished the two as follows administration deals with execution of
government decision and politics was to deal with making decisions of the
government.
Wilson Woodrow in explaining his concept of distinction
developed two premises that is
Ø What the government can properly and successfully do
Ø How it can do it in easier, efficiency with less cost of
money and energy.
With these premises then politics became in the area of decision
making or promogating the will and administration became the implementers of those
will. Scholars like Fabio Rugge (2007) supported the view by arguing that politics has been taken to indicate the sphere
where public opinion are formed, social interest are debated and confront each
other, political parties act, authoritative decisions are taken, on the other
hand administration has been
conceived as a single integrated pieces of machinery, unstirrined by partisan
passion devoted to advisory, clerical and technical works.
This conceptualization helps scholars and students of public
administration to have good understanding of political system and how it works.
Administration in this case had to serve the interest of the public regardless
of the political affiliation of the public; they have to be apolitical as well
as charged with technical works. In supporting the view Frank J Goodnow
supported the separation by looking at the political systems of the government,
therefore public administration had to be found in executive branch of
government separate from legistrative body.
Despite the ground offered by both Wilson and Goodnow the
dichotomy remain problematic to politicians as they would like to maintain
their loyal cooperation with bureaucrat for political interest. In some areas
like European countries of France and Italy politicians could not want to leave
bureaucrats. They maintain ties with beauracratic through patronage systems in
Europe. As Fabio Rugge argued it was only United Kingdom were public
administration became free from politics as it was adopted a system that
“whatever party in power the administration must follow its policy”
In France and Italy the system remain unturned public
administration continues to be politicized, through appointment of ministerial
cabinet and appointment of the top administrative officers to serve the
interest of politicians. With these drawbacks the dichotomy brought a
significant move in the study of public administration as it provided two major
impacts one is the challenging and put to an end of the kingly administration,
and secondly initiated the debate as to whether administration can be separate
from politics.
PRINCIPLE OF MANAGEMENT 1920S-1930S
Following the dichotomy’s ground the separation of
administration from politics became a strategy for scholars like Fredrick
Taylor to diverge completely administration from politics. The phase was
crowded by bureaucratic principles developed by Marx Weber and scientific
management by Fredrick Taylor. Bureaucratic principles by Marx Weber emphases
rational rule, principles of hierarchy, specialization of labor and
meritocracy, not political control over administration. To him administration
had to follow rules and regulations, hierarchical coordination of activities
and meritocracy.
On the other hand scientific management developed by
Fredrick Taylor built on increasing efficiency through engineering management
models not political mechanism. Taylor (911) in Donald is chapter sought “the
best way of to perform administrative work, a way to seek efficiency free from
meddling of partisan politics”. He thought of private management model to be
the best way to increase efficiency for government performance. The advent of
scientific management contributed to the study by one separating administration
from politics especially the legistrative body and second brings in private sector
and engineering mechanism in public administration debate
PUBLIC ADMINSTRATION AS POLITICAL SCIENCE (1940s- 1950s)
Herbert Simon in Donald‘s chapter challenged scientific
management for failure to capture the genuine richness. He argued that the
principle approaches frequently led to conflicting and hence useless,
prescriptions”( Herbert S.1996) Simon, moved ahead to redefined
decisions–making instead of organization structures as advocated by scientific
study, as the critical problem of administration .(Herbert Simon) in Kettl. F.
D (2000) “Public administration at the
millennium the state of the field
This was the period covered by the search of disciplinary
home of public administration; the focus was either public administration as discipline
belongs to political science or had separated away. Some theorist argued that
public administration had escaped political science. Allen S. Chick pointed
that “public administration had come apart and could not be put back together”.
Many and other public administration wanted to be separated and they fought
separatists from political science.
Public administration
started to offer training to students for public services with curriculum
independent from political science. in America Public Administrationist
,established American Society of Public Administration (ASPA) with the major aim of training public servant
and address the weakness of political science in regard to the training of public
servant .They claimed that political
science build on theory in the
field and cared a little about
professional.
PUBLIC MANAGEMENT 1970S
Management focus again appeared in the development of
public administration. Public management has been defined by several scholars
of public administration Christopher Hood defined public management as the
study and practices of design and operation arrangement for the provision of
public services and executive government. Laurence E J on the other hand
defined it as the organization structures, managerial practices and
institutional values in which officials enact the will of the sovereign
authority whether is prince, parliament or civil society.
To understand the historical origin of the phase Laurence
offered four starting point, one is the 1970s American curriculum and research
of New Public policy and efficiency –driven managerial of reform in Europe
.Second is the scientific study of modern reform in administration in America,
Third is the systematic study and practices of cameralism, and lastly is the
appearance of bureaucratic government and administrative doctrine in Ancient
China and medieval regime. With these origins as presented by Laurence, then
public management was equated with public administration as total management of
all affairs of the state
Public management comes in after public administration
occupied unsatisfied seat in political science discipline. In 1950s and 1960s
Kettle.F.D (2000) argued that public administration suffered from the lack of a
theoretical guide and confortable disciplinary home. Therefore some scholars of
public administration thought of vesting their life in management. With that
departure political scientists started to think of the home of administration.
NEW PUBLIC MANAGEMENT- 1990S-PRESENT
With the
advent of globalization and increase
complexity of human activity ,with the
need of the market .Therefore public
administration come at a stage where it’s result –oriented, efficiency
seeking, customer care and mobility of
control .It emerge following the adoption
of market based approach to
public activities. Here the focus of the
discipline is on how government can achieve the most, good with least cost of
time and energy .And the emphasis is on the high level of performance that can
serve clients satisfaction .James P.Pfiffner argued that manager can be
rewarded based on the achievement of their performance goals. Therefore performance
became at the centre of administration.
THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
Public administration still have challenges when it comes
to project it future disciplinary home. Donald K put it clear that public
administration today sits in disciplinary backwater. Some scholars have tried
to replace it with field of study like implementation, public management, and
formal bureaucratic’ theory.
Despite the struggling for home public administration has
increased its importance in government activities. The World Bank and IMF
placed at the synonymous stage with governance when it comes to economic
crisis. Also increased budgetary
administration in America and Europe increased the centrality of public administration.
Example in assessment of who is most responsible for balancing federal budget
begins with federal revenue. Therefore all these increased the greatest demand
of public administration in today‘s government.
CONCLUSION
To winding up our discussion then there is great need of
continuing assessing the academic home of public administration. Now days there
is several administration reforms going on around the word to embrace
managerial approach to public administration. Then the question in regard to
the movement wills public administration seat comfortably in management arena
or should it come to find the resident within political science discipline?
With such question then there is a need to continue researching and debating
the disciplinary home of the study. In one hand public administration study the
affairs of states and some experts of public administration involve in policy
formulation and budgetary planning.
References
Gayu
B (2011); Public Administration Meaning, Nature and Scope, bijugayu.blogspot.com/2011/07/public-administration-meaning-nature
html.
Accessed on 11st November 2013, 05:31 pm
Henry
N (1975); Paradigim of Public Administration; Journal of Public Administration
Review, Vol 35 No 4 July-August
1975, Blackwell publishing.
http//www.jstor.org/stable/974540.
Accessed 05/03/2012 01:09 pm.
Okwodiba
N; introduction to politics
Hood
C: Public Management in Word, the Movement,
the Science in Ferlie E, Lynne
L. E,
and Pollit C (2005); the Handbook of
Public Management, Oxford University
Press
Kettl.D.F
(2000); Public Administration at the Millennium; the State of the Discipline;
Journal of Public Administration Research
and Theory Vol 1
Kettl.D.F
: Future of Public Administration.
www.2h-net.msu.edu/public.administration/tfreport/kettl.
accessed 12nd
November
2013.
Lynn
E L Jr: Public Management; a Concise History of the Field in Ferlie E, Lynne
L. E,
and Pollit C (2005); the Handbook of
Public Management, Oxford University
Press
Rugge F (2007): Administrative Traditions in Western
Europe in Peter G.B and Pierre J (2007) Hand
Book of Public Administration, SAGE Publication, New Delhi.
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Learn more about Weber's Bureaucracy Theory.
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