Public Administration Theory - Answers Wilson (1887) is considered by many to be American public
administration's founder because he wrote the first essay, The Study of Administration, on PA in the U.S.
argued for the central importance of administrative machinery a well-trained civil service based on
merit rather than politics
Who is Woodrow Wilson? - Answers The founder of modern american public administration
What is PA? - Answers management of public programs
PA began with what literature? - Answers Woodrow Wilson's the study of admistration
Wilson said what about PA - Answers It's harder to run an organization than frame an organization
Leonard White - Answers argued "the study of public administration ... needs to be related to the broad
generalizations of political theory concerned with such matters as justice, liberty, obedience, and the
role of the state in human affairs" (p. 10)
Which democratic value are important in the U.S? - Answers 1. individualism
2. equality
3. liberty
Rosenbloom - Answers argues the three institutions of government (i.e., executive, legislative, judiciary)
are related to the three views of the role of pas in society:
managerial approach - Answers executive (efficiency)
political approach - Answers legislative (effectiveness/responsiveness)
legal approach - Answers judiciary (applying/enforcing law in specific instances)
Rosenbloom's 3 institutions? - Answers 1. executive
2. legislative
3. judiciary
3 differences between public and private? - Answers 1. Ambiguity
2. Pluralistic decision making
3. visibility
Ambiguity - Answers Private: the bottom line is profit
, Public: The common good
Pluralistic Decision making - Answers Public service requires many groups be involved
Visibility - Answers Public is subject to daily scrutiny that private is not
Publicness - Answers Sums up the main difference between private and public
Why study PA? - Answers 1. Preparing for PA positions
2. Combining technical/managerial skills
3. Interaction of business/government
4. influencing public organizations
5. making things happen
What are the main issues in PA in practice? - Answers 1. Politics-administration dichotomy
2. Ensuring accountability
3. Bureaucracy and democracy
4. Efficiency versus responsiveness
General skills all PA managers need - Answers 1. conceptual skills
2. technical skills
3. human skills
specific skills for PAs - Answers 1. interpersonal sensitivity
2. communication
3. technical competence
4. action orientation
5. flexibility
6. leadership
7. results focus
8. environmental sensitivity
9. broad perspective