Public Administration in America 11e Michael E. Milakovich and George J. Gordon - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Public Administration in America 11e Michael E. Milakovich and George J. Gordon

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Title: Public Administration in America 11e Michael E. Milakovich and George J. Gordon


1
Public Administration in America 11e Michael E.
Milakovich and George J. Gordon
  • Chapter Five
  • Decision Making in Administration

2
The Nature of Decisions
  • Decision making product of complex social
    process generally extending over a long period of
    time
  • Increasing potential gains
  • Monitoring ongoing decisional process
  • Reducing resource expenditure, uncertainty or risk

3
Approaches to Decision MakingConcepts and
Controversies
  • Rational approach
  • Works to achieve conscious goals
  • Efficiency
  • Cost-benefit analysis/cost-benefit ratios
  • Value-neutral
  • Procedural criteria

4
Approaches to Decision MakingConcepts and
Controversies
  • Critiques of rational model
  • Only applicable to low-level decisions
  • Many impediments to rationality
  • Competition for resources
  • Must deal with different aspects of same problem
  • Not usually applicable to government
    decision-making processes

5
Incrementalism and Mixed Scanning Response and
Counterresponse
  • Incrementalism
  • Uses limited successive comparisons
  • Simplified choices
  • Status quo as reference for decisions
  • Short-term effects crucial consequences
  • Less formalized cost/benefit measurements
  • Satisfice

6
Incrementalism and Mixed Scanning Response and
Counterresponse
  • Advantages of incrementalism
  • Can satisfy ambiguous orders and legislative
    requirements while buying time
  • Sometimes economic models inappropriate
  • Can use nonquantitative measures

7
Incrementalism and Mixed Scanning Response and
Counterresponse
  • Critiques of incrementalism
  • Marginal changes may not meet policy demands, may
    overlook larger needs
  • Makes inertia and status quo acceptable

8
Incrementalism and Mixed Scanning Response and
Counterresponse
  • Mixed scanning
  • Incorporates elements of rational and incremental
    approaches
  • Decisions made by exploring main alternatives,
    but details omitted to permit overview

9
Decisions in the Balance The Environment of
Choice
  • Decision-maker considerations
  • Kinds/quantity of resources to be used
  • Benefits vs. probable costs
  • How are benefits and costs measured?
  • Substantive grounds
  • Political grounds
  • Organizational grounds
  • Which factor predominates?

10
Decisions in the Balance The Environment of
Choice
  • Different grounds predominate for different
    decision makers
  • Specialists (area of expertise)
  • Generalists (political factors)
  • Time factors

11
Information Quality and Decision Analysis
  • Quantity and quality of information
  • Decision analysis techniques
  • Experimental method
  • Technology
  • Human judgment and experience
  • Limitations
  • Imperfect information
  • Costs of obtaining
  • Biases
  • Deliberately distorted information

12
Information Quality and Decision Analysis
  • Other issues facing decision makers
  • Influence by previous decisions, current policy
  • Unanticipated consequences
  • Groupthink
  • Sunk costs
  • Bounded rationality framework

13
The Problem of Goals
  • Organizational goals survival, maintenance,
    substantive, symbolic
  • Symbolic goals attract political support
  • Public policy goals may be aims (not attainable)
  • Criticism can lead to lowering the bar

14
The Problem of Goals
  • Personal goals livelihood, advancement or self
    improvement, strong policy attachment
  • Some focus on personal goals only
  • Personal goals can lead to conflicts

15
The Problem of Goals
  • Downs bureaucratic mind-sets
  • Climbers
  • Conservers
  • Zealots
  • Advocates
  • Statesmen
  • Ideal to have goal congruence

16
Ethical Dimensions of Decision Making
  • What is ethical behavior?
  • ASPAs Code of Ethics
  • Public and ethical obligations
  • Baileys moral attitudes and qualities
  • Internal vs. external checks
  • Rely on bureaucrats character/inclinations
  • Public morality and public trust

17
The Ethical Setting New Emphasis on an Old
Challenge
  • Challenge in defining, establishing and
    maintaining high level of ethical behavior in
    government officials
  • Ethical behaviors
  • Professional conduct
  • Personal honesty
  • Concern for serving public
  • Respecting law and democratic beliefs

18
The Ethical Setting New Emphasis on an Old
Challenge
  • Implementation
  • Formal adoption of ethics code
  • Professional association codes
  • Financial disclosure requirements
  • Honoraria restrictions
  • Professional activity restrictions
  • In-house ethics training
  • Moral leadership

19
Political Rationality A Contradiction in Terms?
  • Can politics and rationality coexist?
  • Political rationality
  • Political costs, benefits, consequences
  • Choice of criteria significant

20
Organized Anarchies and Uncertainty
  • Organized anarchies
  • Garbage can theory
  • Decision making characterized by pervasive
    ambiguity and unpredictable behavior
  • Choices often product of chance (not rationality)
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