Political Control versus Bureaucratic Values: Reframing the Debate

The literature on political control of bureaucracy reveals that bureaucracies are highly responsive to political forces. This paper argues that the political control literature misses evidence from other academic literature that bears directly on this phenomenon. Specifically, researchers need to co...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public administration review 2006-03, Vol.66 (2), p.177-192
Main Authors: Meier, Kenneth J., O'Toole, Laurence J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
1200
2500
8306
9130
9190
Academic Language
Administrative Organization
Administrative Policy
Advanced students
Boards of education
Bureaucracy
Bureaucrats
Control
Corporate bureaucracy
Democracy
Educational administration
Empirical Methods
Empirical research
Essays on Reframing Bureaucracy
Evidence
Experimental/theoretical
Governance
Government bureaucracy
Hispanics
Inferences
Institutions
Literature reviews
Organization theory
Organizational behavior
Political appointments
Political behavior
Political control
Political Factors
Political forces
Political science
Politicians
Politics
Principals
Professional Training
Public administration
Public Officials
Public schools
Regulatory agencies
Schools and educational services
Social policy
Standardized tests
Studies
Teachers
United States
Values
Variables
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Description
Summary:The literature on political control of bureaucracy reveals that bureaucracies are highly responsive to political forces. This paper argues that the political control literature misses evidence from other academic literature that bears directly on this phenomenon. Specifically, researchers need to consider the values of the bureaucracy in any effort to assess the degree of political control. An empirical test is presented using a data set from public education. Results show bureaucratic values to be far more influential in explaining bureaucratic outputs and outcomes than political factors. These findings suggest that a reinterpretation of previous empirical research is urgently in order.
ISSN:0033-3352
1540-6210
DOI:10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00571.x