Paradigm 1:Politics-Administration Dichotomy

(1900-1926)
• In a famous book called "Politics and Administration" published in 1900,
Frank J. Goodnow talked about two important roles of government. He
said there are two main things that government does: "Politics," which
involves making decisions and policies for the state, and
"Administration," which is about carrying out those decisions.
• Goodnow's idea, which became known as the politics/administration
dichotomy, basically means that elected politicians and appointed public
administrators have different jobs in government.
• However, during that time, people didn't pay much attention to these
distinctions as they were trying to figure out what public administration
really meant. Leonard D. White, in his textbook from 1926, emphasized
that politics should not interfere with the efficient functioning of
administration. He also believed that administration could be studied like
a science, without being influenced by political biases.
• This idea laid the groundwork for the next phase of public administration,
where people focused on finding principles and rules for how
administration should work. They were mostly concerned with where
public administration should take place and how it should operate.

PARADIGM 2: PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC

ADMINISTRATION (1927-1937)

• In the late 1920s, there was a shift in the field of public administration.
People believed that government officials could be more effective if they
followed scientific principles in their work. This was part of a broader
trend in management theory, where principles were seen as a way to
improve how organizations and government operated.
• Before this shift, there was an idea called the "politics/administration
dichotomy," which suggested that politicians and administrators had
different roles in government.
• During this time, public administration gained a lot of respect and
recognition as an important field of study and practice.
 • The "principles of administration" were seen as guidelines that could
work in any administrative situation. People like Gulick and Urwick,
who were influential in this field, understood that these principles
weren't unchangeable laws of nature but helpful ideas to understand
the work of top government officials.
• However, they also wanted to present public administration as a
respected profession, so they emphasized the idea of a "science of
administration" based on these principles. This made it sound very
important and credible.
• But there was a problem. Treating public administration as a pure
science made it difficult to apply in practice because government is
complex and not always predictable. During this period, the focus was
on mastering these administrative principles, which became a central
part of studying public administration.

Paradigm 2: Challenges (1938-1947/1950)

In the 1940s, people started questioning two big ideas in public
administration. First, they said it was impossible to separate politics and
administration because public administrators often make political decisions.
Second, they argued that the rules for administration weren't as scientific as
they claimed to be. These rules often contradicted each other, and there was
no solid proof that they made government work better.
These criticisms made scholars rethink how they looked at public
administration. They began to see that politics played a big role in
administration, even for non-elected officials. They also started creating more
realistic models for how organizations, including government, function.
These challenges were important because they made public administration
more realistic and useful as a field of study. They also led to the development
of new theories and models for public administration that are still used today.

Paradigm 3: Public Administration as Political Science

(1950-1970)
 • Paradigm 3 was about reconnecting public administration with political science, but
it had some problems. Public administration experts weren't sure about their role
anymore. They were searching for answers, and during this time, the study of public
administration in the United States lacked a clear and comprehensive intellectual
framework.
• Political science, which is like the parent discipline of public administration, had a
big influence on how public administration developed. Many key ideas from political
science, like the importance of democracy, people's participation in government,
and fairness under the law, still have a strong impact on public administration.
• However, when it comes to training public administrators, political science isn't as
useful. Political science focuses on helping people understand government in a
theoretical way, while public administration is more about teaching people how to
do things practically in government. So, they have different approaches and goals,
which can be a challenge.

Paradigm 4: Public Administration as Management (1956-70)

• In the 1960s, people who studied how governments work started to wonder if they
were being treated right in the field of political science. They believed that what
they studied, called public administration, was unique and needed its own special
place in universities, separate from political science.
• One reason for this was that political science and public administration looked at
different things. Political science focused on how governments and politics work,
while public administration looked at how to manage government organizations
effectively.
• Another reason was that they had different values. Political science cared a lot about
different groups and opinions, while public administration was more about
expertise and following a clear hierarchy.
• Additionally, the idea of managing things efficiently started to become important,
and some people thought that this focus on efficiency might ignore what's best for
the public.
• So, the people studying public administration decided they needed their own
identity and values. They wanted to have their own departments in universities,
separate from political science.
• Their efforts worked, and by the 1970s, there were separate public administration
departments in many universities in the United States. These departments still play
a big role in teaching and practicing public administration today.

Paradigm 5: Public Administration as Public Administration:

1970-Present
 • The "public administration as public administration" paradigm means
that the field of public administration became its own independent area
of study and practice. This shift occurred in the 1970s when the
National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration
(NASPAA) was established. NASPAA is a group that accredits Master of
Public Administration (MPA) programs in the United States.
• political-administrative continuum." It's a way of looking at the
connection between politics and public administration. Instead of seeing
them as completely separate, it suggests they are on a scale. On one side,
have purely political actions, like giving jobs to unqualified family
members. On the other side, have purely administrative actions, like
hiring the best candidates through a fair process. In the middle, have
actions that mix both politics and administration.
• This continuum helps us understand that politics and public
administration often go hand in hand. It also explains why public
administrators, even though they're not elected, sometimes have to
make political decisions.
Paradigm 6: Governance & Good Governance
(1990-present)

• In the present times, many big changes are happening because of technology,
communication, the global economy, and how governments work. These changes
are making businesses, non-profit organizations, and governments rethink their
roles.
• The idea of globalization and the internet is making governments give up some of
their control and power. We are moving from traditional government, where the
state controls citizens and provides public services, to something called
"governance." Governance involves making rules, policies, organizations, and
agreements to control citizens and provide public services. It's not just about one
big government; it's about a network of institutions and arrangements.
• A study that looked at over 800 research studies found that we are moving away
from the old way of "hierarchical government" and more towards "horizontal
governing." This means we're adding new ways of doing things that don't rely on
strict hierarchy.
• Now, public administration is in a bit of a balancing act. On one hand, it wants to be
its own field of study and practice, with its own identity. On the other hand, it also
wants to make a positive impact on society by creating and carrying out policies that
help people. Both of these goals are important and work together. Without its own
 identity, public administration wouldn't have a clear path. But without the goal of
making society better, that identity wouldn't mean much.

Public Administration (PA) is special for a few reasons:

• Bureaucratic Focus: PA looks closely at how government organizations are set up
and how they work. It's not just about politics; it's about the details of how
government agencies operate.
• Different from Regular Management: PA isn't the same as regular management
you might find in a business. That's because it deals with public organizations, like
government and nonprofits. These organizations have different goals than
businesses, and they are accountable to the public. This means they have to answer
to the people who fund them (usually taxpayers), which is a stronger level of
accountability compared to for-profit companies.
So, in simpler terms, Public Administration is unique because it looks at how government
works from the inside, and it's different from regular management because it deals with
organizations that have special goals and are answerable to the public.

Concept of paradigm
A "paradigm" means a typical way of looking at something, like a common pattern or
model.
In public administration, how the field sees itself can be explained using two ideas:
• Locus (Institution): This is like asking "where" the field of public administration
focuses its attention. In this case, it's on the way government organizations work,
which is often referred to as bureaucracy.
• Focus (Specialization): This is about the main things the field studies or specializes
in, like the core topics. For public administration, it's all about the fundamental rules
and principles of how government and public organizations are managed.
So, in simple terms, a paradigm in public administration is like a typical way of thinking
about the field. It's about where it looks (bureaucracy) and what it studies most (principles
of administration).