Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Stillman argues that public administration in the US has lacked a coherent, widely accepted theory that provides a framework for its activities and purposes. The original governmental structure of the Constitution paid little attention to administration as such, for it was devised by founders who were unaware of the "state" and of the need for a coherent theory of state action. Actual administrative development in the early years amounted to a series of pragmatic adaptations to circumstances, reflecting conflicting ideas adopted from earlier traditions and rather haphazardly deployed in the evolving democracy. Administrative development has been ongoing in a practical sense, but the field of public administration still struggles to find an adequate theoretical account of the administrative function in a modern state. Stillman's argument concludes with a survey of current trends and debates but does not attempt to fill the theoretical gap he has described. There are extensive notes and a brief bibliography. Upper-division undergraduates and above. -D. J. Maletz, University of Oklahoma