Public Administration in Perspective

Throughout its history, public administration has used a number of different perspectives for analyzing the discipline's theory and practice, and both mainstream and alternative lenses have produced valuable insights and prescriptions. At the same time, an individual way of looking at PA can be misleading. Alone, a solitary lens can miss critical aspects and often gives only part of the picture. Public Administration in Perspective has been specifically crafted to give new life to public administration theory and practice by helping readers view the discipline through a variety of perspectives. Designed for the capstone course in public administration programs, as well as a fresh approach for courses in PA theory and organizational theory, this unique book provides a culminating experience--bringing together what has been learned in previous MPA courses without simply rehashing old content. It offers a comprehensive guide to eleven major approaches to PA, and synthesizes them to deepen our understanding of the discipline. Each chapter in Part I describes the key features of the selected perspective--history, content, and proponents--and discusses the strengths and weaknesses related to PA theory and practice. Part II synthesizes the various perpectives, with specific implications for PA management and practice. Part III concludes with a complete overview, identifying ways in which readers can think more creatively and productively about PA, putting the perspectives themselves into perspective.

Autorentext

David John Farmer

Inhalt

Preface; 1. Introduction: Public Administration in Perspective; Multiple Lenses: Epistemic Pluralism; Getting Public Administration in Perspective: The Pattern of the Book; Getting Public Administration in Perspective: Reflection Exercises; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; PART I. PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES; 2. Public Administration from a Traditional Perspective; Sketching Traditional Public Administration; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 3. Public Administration from a Business Perspective; Sketching the Business Perspective. Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 4. Public Administration from an Economic Perspective; Sketching the Economic Perspective; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 5. Public Administration from a Political Perspective; Sketching a Political Perspective; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 6. Public Administration from a Perspective of Critical Theory; Sketching Critical Theory; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 7. Public Administration from a Post-structural Perspective; Sketching the Post-structural; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 8. Public Administration from a Psychoanalytic Perspective; Sketching the Psychoanalytic; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 9. Public Administration from a Perspective of Neuroscience; Sketching a Neuroscience Perspective; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 10. Public Administration from a Feminist Perspective; Sketching Feminism; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 11. Public Administration from an Ethical Perspective; Sketching an Ethical Perspective; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 12. Public Administration from a Data Perspective; Sketching Data; Implications; Epilogue; Suggested Readings: Life-changing Books; PART II. SYNTHESIS FOR THEORY AND PRACTICE; 13. Synthesizing: For Public Administration Planning; Summarizing in a Context of Complexity; Summarizing Implications; Synthesizing; Synthesis and Public Administration Planning; Public Administration Planning As Uncovering; False Assumptions in Other Social Science; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 14. Synthesizing: For Managing; Summarizing in a Context of Complexity. Synthesizing; Public Administration Managing as More Visioning, Less Othering; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 15. Synthesizing: For What Underlies Public Administration; Summarizing in a Context of Complexity; Synthesizing; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 16. Synthesizing: For the Public Administration Field; Summarizing in a Context of Complexity; Synthesizing; Deterritorializing; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; 17. Synthesizing: For Public Administration Imaginative Creativity; Summarizing in a Context of Complexity; Synthesizing; Imagine; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; PART III. PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AS A WHOLE; 18. Contemplating: Public Administration on a Treadmill?; Contemplating the Public Administration Syntheses; Contemplating in View of Lived Experience; Contemplating the Application; Contemplating in View of the Unfamiliar; Epilogue; Suggested Readings; References; Index; About the Author.