CSS Forums - Issues in Public Administration Theory and Practice?

[I][U]Extracted from VU book for Public Administration that is really very helpful in understanding the basic concepts of P.A.[/U][/I]

Public administration as a practice is as old as the human civilization. When human beings started living in society in an organized way they started the practice of administration, because they started to live cooperatively in society. It is said that when a man tried to left a stone and was unable to do so alone and was helped by another man, the practice of ‘management/administration began.

[B]Egyptian Pyramids (1491 BC)[/B]
You must have seen Egyptian pyramids and must have thought how such huge structure was built. The construction of Egyptian pyramids in 1491 is an example of practice of administration, as it involved cooperative effort of thousands of people.

[B]Mohenjodaro and Harrapa[/B]
In Pakistan, Mohenjodaro and Harrapa civilizations are a magnificent example of practice of administration. The two cities had well planned roads, granary, wells and walls around the city to protect it. Such planning of city shows that the rulers managed the city well.
So we can say that public administration as a practice is old as civilization, however, Public Administration as a discipline to be taught in formal educational institution, started after World War I (1914), in USA and then in Europe. The emergence of public administration as discipline in USA and Europe was due to the changing role of government. The Great Depression in USA and Europe brought large scale unemployment and low wages, and falling demand for goods. It was felt that in these circumstances the government should invest to provide jobs. Thus, the role of government was seen as
prime mover in economy.

[B]Why Public Administration Received Impetus as A Subject?[/B]
Following were the reasons for the emergence of public administration as a subject:-
1. Expanding welfare role (distributive) of the government
2. The emergence of private sector and regulatory role of government
3. The need for increased efficiency in the Organization
4. Development of Science and Technology
5. Better management of public matters through training in USA

A lot of different definitions explain us different dimension of the subject. These definitions might confuse us and we might say that there is really no such subject as “public administration,” but rather that public administration means different things to different observers and lacks a significant common theoretical or applied meaning, or we might say that public administration is everywhere.

1. The study of public administration overlaps a number of other disciplines, including political science, sociology, economics, psychology, and business administration.
2. Public administration is the use of managerial, political, and legal theories and processes to fulfil the goals of government (welfare of public).

To download the full book of Public Administration, please follow the link below:
[url]http://www.mediafire.com/file/gt94qfc551nbsb9/MGT111_-_Introduction_to_Public_Administration.pdf[/url]