Text CB1A2-I
The quest for universal administrative standards to
promote the effective application of public laws and policies
gave birth to the field of public administration. Woodrow Wilson
argued for a distinction between politics and administration,
arguing that the former was more concerned with democracy,
justice, and equality, while the latter was more concerned with
efficiency, as he postulated that “administration lies beyond the
proper domain of politics; administrative questions are not
political questions” (Wilson, 1887).
According to Waldo (1948), the means and measurements
of efficiency were the same for all administrations: democracy, if
it were to survive, could not afford to ignore the lessons of
centralization, hierarchy and discipline. Bureaucracy as an
organisational type has seen its heyday in the field of public
administration, owing to Woodrow Wilson’s Transfer of
Administrative Principles.
That notwithstanding, the field has gone through
paradigmatic evolution over time by a quest for management
paradigm derived from the discipline of business administration.
The management approach is said to hold the promise of future
public sector reform, replacing the administrative approach
traditionally provided by public administration. A new concept
arises when the management perspective is combined with an
emphasis on the public sector: public management.
Courses and programmes, as well as whole academic
institutions and colleges, are adapting by switching from the term
“public administration” to “public management”. Considering
the growing demands for efficiency in the public sector, the
transition from a public administration to a public management
framework seems to be the right step.
M.O. Obimpeh and J.A. Dankwa. Public administration – public management interface: how different is the “management” from the “administration”? Internet:(adapted)