We will discuss a commentary related to a public administration lecture, in which it helps factor in the dynamics of learning and understanding the theory and practice of this field of expertise, along with the knowledge surrounding the inner machinations of governance that may go applicable to real-life scenarios of bureaucratic functions.
Note: The video reference for this content can be accessed here.
The Background
This serves as a source of the author’s primary thoughts and reactions based on the lecture that lasted an hour and ten minutes as a requirement of this course, and the lessons that have learned along the whole discussion on the lectures about the theorems that has provided in its duration.
Historical Hit Points
At first glance, it is easier to see and say about the current bureaucratic structures that define the government functions per agency and the underlying mechanisms that make it operational especially on the points of the speaker about the lapses and weaknesses that are found in the system. And with those observations also came with an important knowledge dealing with the origins of the study of public administration in its entirety.
It is in the lecture of Dr. Danny Reyes that I learned about the history of this whole study matter or discipline like the current government qualifications and also the course currently taken wherein it all originated during the American Colonial Period starting with their introduction of the discipline as a practice through the foundation of the Civil Service system in country through the Public Law No. 5 established by the U.S.-led Second Philippine Commission, with its attributes still keeps on playing a significant role for the current Philippine Public Administration System although it was altered a bit along the time as discussed.
While the Civil Service system was established at the start of the American Period, the systems are already affirmed in place since the Spanish Era although it is just merely a practice that the academic study and theories involving the government and public administration came just half a century later in the year 1952, during the time that the Philippines was a newly-independent nation from the United States and with all of its government structure, public administration and enacted laws patterned to the latter wherein the Institute of Public Administration was established in the University of the Philippines.
It is from these established systems that bureaucracy in itself was formed, wherein there is a step-by-step processing of any related documents or certifications that validates or makes eligible of a business to operate or for an individual to get pertinent papers that are needed for whatever purpose their documents are to use such as using it for the submission of requirements needed in the workplace or for the processing of travel documents like passport in order to get into another country with the purpose of either visiting a place as a tourist or as an overseas worker.
This shows that the intricate systems of public administration and governance was already established long through the practices introduced in both Spanish and American periods with the discipline or study about this field of interest just came in later on, enhancing the way governance and public administration works in the country for the benefit of the Filipino people as a whole, with constant change of ideas and definitions keep on moulding the concepts and ideas in this field that determines the factor on the way the government pushes its policies, improving its systemic processes and provides deeper understanding that may give ideas to the people of bureaucracy to utilize its knowledge for the best interest of the country and its people.
Ever-changing definitions of Public Administration
From the establishment of Public Administration study and discipline in the early 1950s, many definitions, principles and concepts have changed or added as the complexities of this field intensify which covers different areas of governance and public service in its entirety, aiming to determine, understand and improve services for the betterment of this country’s management of its current implementing policies, rules and regulations as well as laws passed.
Being a discipline, public administration studies aim to establish of effectiveness and efficiency within the government especially amongst civil servants or also known as government employees of different appointments and positions as the practice of this discipline are usually done by these career service personnel who accomplished their eligibility requirements such as passing either a professional or sub-professional examinations in order to be part and contribute for the country’s betterment.
Being a country whose government and public administration inspired from those in the United States, the idealisms that define our form of discipline can be seen from the scholars that help shaped the way government functions and how public administration performed by the Americans whose civil service system improved in 1883.
One definition shown by the presenter was made by Woodrow Wilson; the 28th President of the United States who ruled from 1913 to 1921 with the Philippines at that time is well within his administration. According to him, “Public administration is the detailed and systematic execution of public law” which means that its practice defines the effectiveness of laws enacted of which its effect and implementation shows the determination of a functioning government in keeping things at order, with different civil servants playing a key role in making an effective public administration happen.
Another definition is from Herbert A. Simon, a renowned American economist and political scientist of his time, explicates that and quote that Public Administration in itself “refers to the activities of the executive branches of national, state and local governments; independent boards and commissions; and certain other agencies of a specialized character. Specifically excluded are judicial and legislative agencies within the government”.
Take note that the Public Administration at that time emphasizes more on Executive Branch itself, aligned with what Woodrow Wilson said about the detailed and systemic execution of public law in which the discipline tackles more on the government practices and implementation of passed legislature that clearly affects directly to a country’s societal way of living and the economic performance that came along with it.
Emphasizing further about the discipline of Public Administration revolving into the executive branch is from Fritz Morstein Marx, himself a German-American political and administrative scientist that contributed a lot in the study through one of his publication the Elements of Public Administration which was first published in the mid-1940s. It is quoted there in his publication, highlighted that “by established by usage, however, it has come to signify primarily the organization, personnel, practices, and procedures, essential to effective performance of the civilian functions entrusted to the Executive Branch of the government”.
Also on the definition of public administration sticking into the executive branch of the government is the American historian who specialized in public administration whose name is Leonard D. White. His definition went as follows: “the composite of all the laws, regulations, practices, relationships, codes, and customs that prevail at any time in any jurisdiction for the fulfilment and execution of public policy.” Just like Wilson, Simon and Marx, White further affirms about the emphasis of implementing public policy which in itself is a feature of the executive branch and the way it instils order and development of the country and its citizenry.
Since then, the definitions of public administration started to diversify a bit although it still sticks to the primary understanding of catering the needs of the citizenry, specifically the systems implemented to cater their needs in ways that are direct or indirect. First is on how public administration caters the citizenry that defines a nation as a whole. Authors Marshall and Gladys Dimock, as well as Douglas Fox, define Public Administration as “the production of goods and services designed to serve the needs of citizen-consumers”.
Basically it means that by its definition, Public Administration is now came with the purpose of dealing with the public or say, the citizens of the republic and to provide them the services and goods in a way that a business does in dealing with its customers with the aims that the necessities of the citizenry are to be satisfied from what the government provides, ranging from faster processing times of documents to faster implementation of public nature like infrastructure and social work projects.
This change in perspective further implied by McSuite in 2002, defining Public Administration as “public service is service, and as such always be seen in personal terms…the only path along which personal human development can proceed”.
Lastly, David Rosenbloom define Public Administration in terms that it is limited from what Wilson, Simon, Marx and White described as it covers the all branches of the government as a whole. He defined the discipline as “is the use of managerial, political, and legal theories and processes to fulfil legislative, executive, and judicial governmental mandates for the provision of regulatory and service functions for the society as a whole or for some segments of it”.
The Theories
The foundation of Public Administration as a whole in the United States lies with Woodrow Wilson, the father who eventually became the 28th President of the United States which, in his 1887 publication shown the departure of this discipline from what was once known as a sub-branch of the study of Political Science, giving distinction between political and administrative matters.
It was in his belief that public administrative policies shall not be intervened by political patronage and the way it operates shall be akin to how businesses operates or as he quote it “The field of administration is a field of business. It is removed from the hurry and strife of politics”. This line of principle became one of the bases on his advocacy at his time about civil service reforms, influencing public administration in the Philippines and the way its civil service is currently structured.
From this, it has clarified further by Frank Goodnow who is a Wilson supporter that politics shall be limited from the implementation of policies whereas administration will be the one who will implement it which is usually instilled to the executive branch.
Knowing POSDCORB
One significant contribution made in Public Administration goes with the acronym POSDCORB. Coined by American political scientist Luther Halsey Gulick, it stands for Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Coordinating, Reporting, and Budgeting.
Standing as a managerial principle, POSDCORB came as framework gives objective that is also applicable in multiple business or corporate settings wherein an organization distributes work processes to each employees of different job description while considering the number of employees needed for the process, while determining the plans of streamlining the processes which goes in synchronization that attempts to achieve overall efficiency and effectiveness which are two fundamental principles of management.
With this framework, it will help organizations especially government agencies to achieve the primary objectives at work while evenly distributing the workloads among government employees in the aims that they deliver the goods and services that the citizenry deserves to have for the nation’s societal and economic development.
Theory of Bureaucracy by Max Weber, German Sociologist
The viewpoint of a known German sociologist and also an economist Max Weber was presented as a world view that addressed the issue of power and authority, and the legitimacy of those who rule in society. His ideas on bureaucracy is fully idealistic, sticking on the strictest of rules and the evenly, affirmed distribution of power which connotes to the legitimacy of the government to rule as there is the effectiveness in an organizational management, sticking to its rationality and efficiency in achieving an objective such as maximizing output that a government office makes in processing papers, or in awarding of projects after thorough checks and finalizations.
Influences From Other Known Scholars of Public Administration
Aside from Gulick and Weber, there are also other notable scholars of public administration with their own respective contributions which helps influence the current discipline of Public Administration especially in the case of the Republic of the Philippines which primarily derived its practices and theories from the ideals set by its former colonial overlord the United States of America.
One idea of thought is Taylorism which was coined from a major Public Administration theory made by the Frederick Winslow Taylor who was an American Mechanical Engineer wherein he provided the scientific management theory which basically focuses on work efficiency in a similar manner Weber emphasize it in his theory of Bureaucracy although it went into an approach that more productive employees deserve to be rewarded usually by higher compensation, a practice which goes with the employee performances within the Philippine Government awarded with a Performance-Based Bonus or PBB.
Another is from Elton Mayo with his well-known Hawthorne Experiments in which he set observations to the employees with regards to their productivity and create a number of conclusions that surrounds the reasons for employee motivation, as well as understanding the problems regarding the turn-over of workers in the Hawthorne Plant in Chicago which was the place where the experiment took place.
Checking the human side of the business enterprise, it was determined that by special attention by a Supervisor further motivates workers at this study to further enhance, boost or increase the overall productivity of the nature of their work.
Another factor regarding the increase in productivity is with regards to the work environment which promotes a sense of positivity by providing a sense of good treatment to the employees on their job performance, giving the needed inspiration as well as the motivation to do better in their respective work which simply turns into a more effective turnout of their performance that greatly benefits any organizations at play, both government and private institutions or businesses.
Wrapping It Up
Learning from the video, the discipline of Public Administration has undertaken multiple transformations regarding to its definition and concepts taken as the spectrum of its discussion changes from covering a single branch of the government down to having the entire system involved as the studies changes from the internal, systems-based study into a business-like external treatment of citizen-consumers and providing them the best services and goods they deserve to have as expected by the citizenry from a good government.
Moreover, it came to the realization about the studies covering the theories, contributions of influences to the current discipline and the scholars that define it as they helped transform the discipline of public administration into what it is currently, enhancing the understanding that actually involves dealing with the people and the overall societal way of living as it is with this study that policies are implemented or executed.
To sum it up, the understanding and learning about the theories of public administration is just as important as actually practicing it, as it gives further ideas about an inner workings of a systems such as the ones that are within the bureaucracy like a government service, giving more definition on what it means to serve the country by seeing aspects of this discipline secretly playing at the everyday duties and responsibilities of every employee, spanning various agencies with an aim of developing the nation for the further, aside from aspirations of improving his or her family and community.
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