Public Policy and Administration

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1. Over time, how have members of the field of public administration examined the subject of policy and administration (has the dichotomy changed)?
The studies of policy and administration have been viewed in different ways; overtime, the pre-modern era to its now 21st century outlook has changed. In the beginning, kings had treasures and tax collector to oversee the daily business of the empire. Today these members are public servants working in all levels of government; implanting various inputs to produce their desired policies as results. New policies in public administration spurred from the peoples dissatisfaction with the government. From corruption, favoritism and self-preservation drew the attention of change; leading to the innovative ideas of Alexandra Hamilton, who pushed for a stronger federal government.
Has the dichotomy changed? Yes, I believe it has, certainly a lot more is to be done. There is a significant importance in putting policy and administration together; Waldo (1987) wrote: “Nothing is more central in thinking about public administration than the nature and interrelations of politics and administration. Nor are the nature and interrelations of politics and administration matter only for academics theorizing. What is more important in the day-to-day, year-to-year, decade-to-decade operation of government than the ways in which politics and administration are conceptualized, rationalized, and related one to the other.”
Today’s policies are essential to the development of the people; servicing the needs and interest of the citizens. Policy change builds a greater society; these revolutions are sometimes forced by external conditions “outside events or “shocks” – such as a change of government, an economi...

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...he general population. In the end, we have to keep in mind that those in government will always have their hidden agendas.

Works Cited

• Corduneanu-Huci, Cristina,; Alexander Hamilton and Issel Masses Ferrer (2012) Understanding Policy Change: How to Apply Political Economy Concepts in Practice. The World Bank: Washington DC
• Lawrence E. Lynn - Public Management as art, science, and profession.
• Paul C. Nutt, the Ohio State University-Comparing Public & Private Sector Decision - Making Practices.
• Waldo, D., 1987, “Politics and Administration: On thinking about a complex Relationship”. In a centennial History of the American Administration State, ed. Chandler R.C. New York: The Free Press
• http://photos.state.gov/libraries/korea/49271/dwoa_122709/US_Governed.pdf
• https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/11879/9780821395387.pdf?sequence=2

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