PAP 1301 Study Guide - Fall 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Canada, Bureaucracy, Woodrow Wilson
12 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
PAP 1301
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
September 5th, 2018 - Day 1
● Course objectives
○ What is public administration?
○ Develop analytical and critical skills
● When reading a scientific article
○ What is the central argument the author(s) are trying to make?
■ What’s the thesis statement?
○ What is the evidence the authors used to support their argument?
■ Interviews, statistics, secondary sources etc.
○ Who are the foes and the friends of the author?
■ What do different groups feel about this (Group A vs Group B)?
■ Assess whether the author’s central argument is congruent or
incompatible with the notion that politics and administration are separate
realms (i.e. the politics-administration dichotomy)
● Administration and politics are not the same thing
○ “Administration questions are not the same thing as political questions” -
Woodrow Wilson
○ Public/civil servants should be non-partisan
○ Politics = how should we do this
○ Administration = what should we do
● Course evaluations
○ Midterm exam - Oct 15th
■ Start studying at least 2 weeks beforehand
○ Final exam - TBA
○ Group discussions
○ Scholarly book review
September 10th, 2018 - Day 2
● Journals
○ CJPS
○ CPA
● What is public administration?
○ “The managerial practices and institutional values by which officials will enact the
will of the sovereign authority”
■ Interested in studying the execution of the will of the sovereign
■ Draws upon political science, sociology, organizational studies, law,
economics and business administration
○ Set of administrative practices that provide services through a body of officials
■ Carrying out the wishes of government
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
○ Theory of public service motivation
■ People want to be public servants because it’s a great way to make a
difference
● History of public administration
○ 1900s emerging from poli sci
○ Normative field
■ “Should or should not” type of instances
○ Focus on government institutions
○ Strongly influenced by American scholars
○ ‘Public Administration’ scientific journal established in 1923
○ Canadian Journal of Public Administration established in 1958
○ Ancient China
○ In the West...beginning of 20th century
○ Arising alongside increasing distaste of the spoils-system
■ Robert Borden claimed that the spoils system was creating a government
filled with useless officials
■ Wanted merit > patronage
● What is politics?
○ Is about power
○ Power: the ability to authorize, influence or coerce the behavior of someone else
○ The expression of power can be subtle or overt
■ “The pen is mightier than the sword”
○ “Politics is the authoritative allocation of values” (David Easton)
○ Values
■ Exemplified in public policies
● Pension policy
● Pre-WW2
○ values (norms) of individual responsibility
● Contemporary
○ No government provided pensions
○ Reliance on individual saving mechanisms
○ RRSP
● Post-WW2
○ Collective welfare
○ Value of alleviating poverty
○ Welfare state
■ Universal healthcare
■ Free education
■ Subsidized child care
■ Pensions:
● Universal payments based on general tax
revenue
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Assess whether the author"s central argument is congruent or incompatible with the notion that politics and administration are separate realms (i. e. the politics-administration dichotomy) Administration and politics are not the same thing. Administration questions are not the same thing as political questions - Politics = how should we do this. Start studying at least 2 weeks beforehand. The managerial practices and institutional values by which officials will enact the will of the sovereign authority . Interested in studying the execution of the will of the sovereign. Draws upon political science, sociology, organizational studies, law, economics and business administration. Set of administrative practices that provide services through a body of officials. People want to be public servants because it"s a great way to make a difference. Should or should not type of instances. Public administration" scientific journal established in 1923. Canadian journal of public administration established in 1958. Arising alongside increasing distaste of the spoils-system.
