Understanding Public Administration

Michiel S. de Vries

ISBN 10: 1137575441 / ISBN 13: 9781137575449

Published by Macmillan Education UK, 2016

About this Item

This new introductory text by one of the key individuals working in the area explores the essential themes and issues that are crucial to understanding public administration as a distinct field today. Num Pages: 256 pages, biography. BIC Classification: JPP. Category: (U) Tertiary Education (US: College). Dimension: 140 x 219 x 15. Weight in Grams: 326. . 2016. 1st ed. 2016. Paperback. . . . .

Seller Inventory # V9781137575449

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Understanding Public Administration
• Publisher: Macmillan Education UK
• Publication Date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1137575441
• ISBN 13: 9781137575449
• Binding: Soft cover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Public administration – the practice of producing and executing government policy by bureaucrats, politicians, managers and other officials – affects almost everything we encounter in our day-to-day lives. Public administrators are – at least partially – responsible for the amount of hours we work, the quality of the air we breathe, the ease with which we can visit the doctor and the state of the roads we walk and drive down. Despite the widespread relevance of public administration however, the relative amount of government influence on society differs across the world.

This major new introduction examines public administration structures, processes and achievements, and the behavior and motivations of the administrators themselves. Internationally relevant and analyzing states at a range of different developmental stages, it examines the key themes and issues that dominate the field. Chapters are framed around a series of questions that determine the typical and the unusual features of governments. For example, focus is given to what makes for a stable government, the different definitions of management, possible solutions to corruption, the relationship between central and local governments as well as the formal strategies for policy development.

The book draws extensively on core theory in the field, and makes critical links between public administration and economics, law, sociology and the wider subject of political science. As accessible for students as it is useful for practitioners looking for a comprehensive reference guide, this is an essential text for those who wish to understand the complexities of government and public administration from the inside out.

About the Author

Michiel S. de Vries holds the chair in Public Administration at the Radboud University of Nijmegen, the Netherlands.