McKinney J.B., Howard L.C. Public administration: balancing power and accountability

2nd ed. — London: Greenwood Publishing group, 1998. — 520 p.This is a complete and up-to-date revision of the classic text for public administration, implementing the rule of law as a fundamental issue in American democracy in pursuit of the common interest. It presents public administration as a tension between the necessary exercise of power and the search for responsiveness to achieve maximum accountability from public servants. The authors have initiated a new approach to the study of public administration by focusing on middle- and lower-level managers. These are positions that most public servants will occupy for the bulk of their professional careers. The book recognizes that most of the administration is in field offices, in state and local government, and in cooperation with the private and nonprofit sectors. It then focuses on power and its potential for influencing the behavior of the bureaucracy to perform its goal-oriented and balancing functions in a pluralistic open system. This leads to the relationship between theories about administration and the actual practice and how best results (imperative of accountability) are achieved in the increasingly globalized environment.Figures and Tables
Preface
Context of Administration
Ethical Foundations and Imperatives of Public Management
The Environment and Setting for Public Administration
Reinventing Government: Transforming Public Administration
Administration in the Context of Its Practice
Public Administration and Public Policy
The External Environment of Public Administration
Linking Practice and Theory
Organization Theory and Management Practice
Processes and Practices
Planning in Public Management
Organizing, Coordinating, and Controlling the Internal Environment of Management
Decision-Making and Communication as Basic Management Activities
Leadership in Public Management
Community Relations in Public Management
Supporting and Controlling Functions
Personnel: The Administration and Management of Human Resources
Financial Management
Productivity and Evaluation
Policy Areas
Intergovernmental Relations and Administration
International Administration and Development
Balancing Power and Accountability
Appendix
Index