Comp Public Admin
Literature Review
The concept of Representative Bureaucracy has been a major concept discussed in many academic fields such as Public Administration due to its constant relevance in the civil service in the public and private spheres of society. Representative bureaucracy can be defined as the demographic composition of the bureaucracy which should mirror the demographic composition of the public. In a society where this is practiced, the various groups in society can be equally represented when it comes to their needs and concerns especially when it comes to bureaucratic decision making, however, a non representative bureaucracy exhibits functionalities of not representing the demographic composition of the bureaucracy.
The first ample suggestion for a representative bureaucracy was presented by J. Donald Kingsley (1944) in his analysis of the English Civil Service. Drawing from Jacksonian ideals and Marxian analysis, Kingsley did not suggest the need for a bureaucracy which was broadly representative of society but rather claimed, "Administrative arrangements always reflect the character of the social structure of a nation," that is, bureaucracy represents the dominant class in society. It was also noted that no great outcry for reform emerged because the bureaucracy was representative of the powerful in society. One of Kingsley’s main assumptions is that of the social class being the most important demographic variable, as a result those within the executive and administrative class who graduated were assured positions from the clerical to the executive class. It can then be said that the system was based on meritocracy which is a system used to bring about equality and representativeness, however, not all citizens will be educated due various reasons such as finances, hence reducing the representativeness of the system.
Literature Review
Following in the steps of Kingsley, Fredrick Mosher (1982) believes that “administrative decisions are a function of
The concept of Representative Bureaucracy has been a major concept discussed in many academic fields such as Public Administration due to its constant relevance in the civil service in the public and private spheres of society. Representative bureaucracy can be defined as the demographic composition of the bureaucracy which should mirror the demographic composition of the public. In a society where this is practiced, the various groups in society can be equally represented when it comes to their needs and concerns especially when it comes to bureaucratic decision making, however, a non representative bureaucracy exhibits functionalities of not representing the demographic composition of the bureaucracy.
The first ample suggestion for a representative bureaucracy was presented by J. Donald Kingsley (1944) in his analysis of the English Civil Service. Drawing from Jacksonian ideals and Marxian analysis, Kingsley did not suggest the need for a bureaucracy which was broadly representative of society but rather claimed, "Administrative arrangements always reflect the character of the social structure of a nation," that is, bureaucracy represents the dominant class in society. It was also noted that no great outcry for reform emerged because the bureaucracy was representative of the powerful in society. One of Kingsley’s main assumptions is that of the social class being the most important demographic variable, as a result those within the executive and administrative class who graduated were assured positions from the clerical to the executive class. It can then be said that the system was based on meritocracy which is a system used to bring about equality and representativeness, however, not all citizens will be educated due various reasons such as finances, hence reducing the representativeness of the system.
Literature Review
Following in the steps of Kingsley, Fredrick Mosher (1982) believes that “administrative decisions are a function of