Cynicism about the federal bureaucracy is widespread. The general public views federal employees as aloof, uncaring bureaucrats who are unresponsive to their requests. Throughout the country, there is a prevailing sense that government is synonymous with inefficiency and waste and that the federal bureaucracy is essentially out of control. The American bureaucracy is the administrative organization that handles the day-to-day business of the government. Sometimes, it seems untouchable, doesn't it? Its members are not elected by the people but appointed by the president or hired by the upper levels of the bureaucratic chain of command. Nov 25, 2016  However, Goodsell counters this negative evidence with a litany of more positive attitudes toward bureaucracy.Goodsell argues that when asked about specific experiences with government agencies and individuals’ satisfaction with services, the majority of individuals report high levels of satisfaction with their experiences and their ability to receive services in a timely manner.

1. Almost All Of The Federal Bureaucracy Is Found In The

Bureaucracy ( ) refers to both a body of non-elective government officials and an policy-making group. Historicallya bureaucracy was a managed by departments staffed with non-elected officials. Today, bureaucracy is the administrative governing any large, whether publicly owned or privately owned. The in many countries is an example of a bureaucracy, but so is the centralized hierarchical structure of a firm.Various commentators have noted the necessity of bureaucracies in modern society. The German sociologist argued that bureaucracy constitutes the most efficient and rational way in which human activity can be organized and that systematic processes and organized hierarchies are necessary to maintain order, maximize, and eliminate favoritism. On the other hand, Weber also saw unfettered bureaucracy as a threat to, with the potential of trapping individuals in an impersonal ' of rule-based, rational control.The term 'bureaucracy' originated in the: it combines the French word bureau – desk or office – with the Greek word κράτος ( kratos) – rule. The French economist (1712-1759) coined the word in the mid-18th century.

Gournay never wrote the term down but a letter from a contemporary later quoted him:The late M. Sometimes used to say: 'We have an illness in France which bids fair to play havoc with us; this illness is called bureaumania.' Sometimes he used to invent a fourth or fifth form of government under the heading of 'bureaucracy.' The first known use dates to 1818 with Irish novelist referring to the apparatus used by the British to subjugate their Irish colony as 'the Bureaucratie, or office tyranny, by which Ireland has so long been governed.' By the mid-19th century the word appeared in a more neutral sense, referring to a system of public administration in which offices were held by unelected career officials.

In this context 'bureaucracy' was seen as a distinct form of, often subservient to a monarchy. In the 1920s the German sociologist expanded the definition to include any system of administration conducted by trained professionals according to fixed rules. Weber saw bureaucracy as a relatively positive development; however, by 1944 the economist opined in the context of his experience in the regime that the term bureaucracy was 'always applied with an opprobrious connotation,' and by 1957 the American sociologist suggested that the term ' had become an ', a Schimpfwort' in some circumstances.

The word 'bureaucracy' is also used in politics and government with a disapproving tone to disparage official rules that make it difficult to do things. In workplaces, the word is used very often to blame complicated rules, processes, and written work that make it hard to get something done.Although the term 'bureaucracy' first originated in the mid-18th century, organized and consistent administrative systems existed much earlier. The development of writing ( c.

3500 BC) and the use of documents was critical to the administration of this system, and the first definitive emergence of bureaucracy occurred in ancient, where an emergent class of used to administer the harvest and to allocate its spoils. Also had a hereditary class of scribes that administered the bureaucracy.A hierarchy of regional and their deputies administered the.

The reforms of (Emperor from 284 to 305) doubled the number of administrative districts and led to a large-scale expansion of Roman bureaucracy. The early Christian author ( c. 325) claimed that Diocletian's reforms led to widespread economic stagnation, since 'the provinces were divided into minute portions, and many presidents and a multitude of inferior officers lay heavy on each territory.'

After the Empire split, the developed a notoriously, and in the 20th century the term 'Byzantine' came to refer to any complex bureaucratic structure.In, the (202 BC - 220 AD) established a complicated bureaucracy based on the teachings of, who emphasized the importance of in a family, in relationships, and in politics. With each subsequent dynasty, the bureaucracy evolved. During the (960–1279) the bureaucracy became.

Almost All Of The Federal Bureaucracy Is Found In The

Following the reforms, took place to determine which candidates qualified to hold given positions. The imperial examination system lasted until 1905, six years before the collapsed, marking the end of China's traditional bureaucratic system. Instead of the inefficient and often corrupt system of that prevailed in states such as France, the was able to exert control over the entire system of tax revenue and government expenditure. By the late 18th century, the ratio of fiscal bureaucracy to population in Britain was approximately 1 in 1300, almost four times larger than the second most heavily bureaucratized nation, France. Thomas Taylor Meadows, Britain's consul in, argued in his Desultory Notes on the Government and People of China (1847) that 'the long duration of the Chinese empire is solely and altogether owing to the good government which consists in the advancement of men of talent and merit only,' and that the British must reform their civil service by making the institution. Influenced by the ancient Chinese, the of 1854 recommended that recruitment should be on the basis of merit determined through competitive examination, candidates should have a solid general education to enable inter-departmental transfers, and promotion should be through achievement rather than 'preferment, patronage, or purchase'. This led to implementation of as a systematic, meritocratic civil service bureaucracy.Like the British, the development of French bureaucracy was influenced by the Chinese system.

Under, the old nobility had neither power nor political influence, their only privilege being exemption from taxes. The dissatisfied noblemen complained about this 'unnatural' state of affairs, and discovered similarities between and bureaucratic. With the translation of texts during the, the concept of a reached intellectuals in the West, who saw it as an alternative to the traditional of Europe. The fully developed bureaucratic apparatus compares with other organisations exactly as does the machine with the non-mechanical modes of production.The German sociologist was the first to formally study bureaucracy and his works led to the popularization of this term. In his 1922 essay Bureaucracy, published in his magnum opus, Weber described many forms of, government, and business.

His ideal-typical bureaucracy, whether public or private, is characterized by:Weber listed several preconditions for the of bureaucracy, including an increase in the amount of space and population being administered, an increase in the complexity of the administrative tasks being carried out, and the existence of a requiring a more efficient administrative system. Development of and technologies make more efficient administration possible, and and rationalization of culture results in demands for.Although he was not necessarily an admirer of bureaucracy, Weber saw bureaucratization as the most efficient and rational way of organizing human activity and therefore as the key to, indispensable to the modern world. Furthermore, he saw it as the key process in the ongoing of. Weber also saw bureaucracy, however, as a threat to individual freedoms, and the ongoing bureaucratization as leading to a 'polar night of icy darkness', in which increasing rationalization of human life traps individuals in a soulless ' of bureaucratic, rule-based, rational control. Weber's critical study of the bureaucratization of society became one of the most enduring parts of his work. Many aspects of modern public administration are based on his work, and a classic, hierarchically organized of the Continental type is called 'Weberian civil service'.Writing as an academic while a professor at, 's essay argued for bureaucracy as a professional cadre, devoid of allegiance to fleeting politics.

Wilson advocated a bureaucracy that 'is a part of political life only as the methods of the counting house are a part of the life of society; only as machinery is part of the manufactured product. But it is, at the same time, raised very far above the dull level of mere technical detail by the fact that through its greater principles it is directly connected with the lasting maxims of political wisdom, the permanent truths of political progress.' Wilson did not advocate a replacement of rule by the governed, he simply advised that, 'Administrative questions are not political questions. Although politics sets the tasks for administration, it should not be suffered to manipulate its offices'.

This essay became a foundation for the study of public administration in America.In his 1944 work, the Austrian economist compared bureaucratic management to profit management. Profit management, he argued, is the most effective method of organization when the services rendered may be checked by economic calculation of profit and loss. When, however, the service in question can not be subjected to economic calculation, bureaucratic management is necessary.

He did not oppose universally bureaucratic management; on the contrary, he argued that bureaucracy is an indispensable method for social organization, for it is the only method by which the law can be made supreme, and is the protector of the individual against despotic arbitrariness. Using the example of the Catholic Church, he pointed out that bureaucracy is only appropriate for an organization whose code of conduct is not subject to change. He then went on to argue that complaints about bureaucratization usually refer not to the criticism of the bureaucratic methods themselves, but to 'the intrusion of bureaucracy into all spheres of human life.'

Mises saw bureaucratic processes at work in both the private and public spheres; however, he believed that bureaucratization in the private sphere could only occur as a consequence of government interference. According to him, 'What must be realized is only that the strait jacket of bureaucratic organization paralyzes the individual's initiative, while within the capitalist market society an innovator still has a chance to succeed. The former makes for stagnation and preservation of inveterate methods, the latter makes for progress and improvement.' American sociologist expanded on Weber's theories of bureaucracy in his work Social Theory and Social Structure, published in 1957. While Merton agreed with certain aspects of Weber's analysis, he also noted the dysfunctional aspects of bureaucracy, which he attributed to a 'trained incapacity' resulting from 'over conformity'. He believed that bureaucrats are more likely to defend their own entrenched interests than to act to benefit the organization as a whole but that pride in their craft makes them resistant to changes in established routines.