Evolution of the Field of Public

Administration
 Paradigms or models attempt to interpret the
development of thought in the field and to
image its direction
 Politics-administration dichotomy tradition
(Woodrow Wilson, Frank Goodnow)
- the role of politics has something to do with
the expression of the will of state while
administration, with execution
Paradigms/Models
 Science of administration or principles of administration –
managerial functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing,
coordinating, reporting and budgeting (Gulick and Urwick)
 Use of classical approaches such as hierarchy, functional
division of tasks, centralized housekeeping activities, and line
and staff distinctions (John Pfiffner)
 Bureaucratic model of Max Weber – bureaucratic organization
is hierarchical in its structure, based on strict adherence to rules
and regulations, impersonal on its behavioral side, with official
documents and files providing the necessary permanence and
continuity; there is security of tenure, promotion based seniority
or merit and positions are held on a full- time basis; there is
separation of bureaucratic actions from political and moral
decisions; notion of “value-free” administration
Paradigms or Models

 Scientific management movement – application of

science principles to work methods and offered the
“one best way” approach of doing things. Influenced
by Frederick Taylor, the approach used the scientific
methods of inquiry in understanding the problems of
wastage and inefficiency in the work place
 Behavioral-environmental concerns movement –
evoked by studies of human relations by Elton Mayo
Paradigms or Models

 Systems theory – advocated by Herbert Simon built

upon the work of Chester Barnard’s The Functions of
the Executive; decision-making was at the heart of
managerial processes
- administrative systems can’t limit itself to the
internal perspectives of public organization but must
equally address the environment in which it
operates; political roles of administrators are
highlighted at this stage
Paradigms or Models
 Policy issue model – Dwight Waldo argued for a reorientation of the
field towards policy issues and concerns of a broader nature such as
security, justice, education, science urbanism, and development
 New Public Administration – rejects cherished values generally upheld
in administrative thought particularly such norms as efficiency,
effectiveness and economy; these values accentuated impersonal
nature of public organizations, for they attempted to be efficient and
effective at the expense of understanding the needs and demands of
their target public; rejected the politics-administration dichotomy; it
offered new array of values such as relevance, equity, responsiveness
and the proposition that Public Administration must not simply operate
within the assumptions of a stable environment, but of a volatile,
changing one
 Continuation of Models
 Development Administration - popularized by Riggs,
Weidner, Landau, and Gant; emerged as a field of
study focused on the development of third world
countries
 Gant defined DA as not only addressing State
functions such as public service delivery and
enforcement of laws but the inducement and
management of change to pursue development
aspirations; developing countries were in urgent
need to implement fundamental reforms in their
politico-administrative machinery.
Paradigms or Models

 Reinventing government – David Osborne and Ted

Gaebler – emphasis on an “entrepreneurial
government” as catalytic (steering rather than
rowing); community-owned (empowering rather than
serving); competitive (injecting competition into
service delivery); mission-oriented (transforming
rule-driven organizations); results-oriented (funding
outcomes, not inputs); customer-driven (meeting the
needs of the customer, not the bureaucracy)
Continuation of reinventing
government

 Enterprising (earning rather than spending);

anticipatory ( prevention rather than cure);
decentralized (from hierarchy to participation
and teamwork); and market-oriented
(leveraging change through the market)
Paradigms or Models
 New public management – a reform model; a reaction to the
traditional/classical bureaucratic model described as follows:
1. There should be a clear separation between politics and
administration, and therefore distinct roles for political leaders
(normally elected) and state officials (normally appointed)
2. Administration should be continuous and predictable,
operating on the basis of written, unambiguous rules
3. Administrators should be recruited on the basis of
qualifications, and should be trained professionals
4. Organization should reflect a functional division of labor, and
a hierarchical arrangement of tasks and people
Continuation of bureaucratic model

5. Resources should belong to the

organization, not to individuals working in the
organization
6. The principal motivation should be a sense
of duty , of public interest, which should
override organizational or private interests
Characteristics of NPM Model

 Separation of strategic policy from operational

management
 A concern with results rather than process and
procedure
 An orientation to the needs of citizens rather than the
interests of the organization or bureaucrats
 A withdrawal from direct service provision in favour
of a steering or enabling role
 A changed, entrepreneurial management culture