The success or failure of empires, nation-states, and city-states often rests on the relationship between bureaucracy and politicians. In this provocative and timely volume, editor Ali Farazmand examines the myriad relationships between politicians and bureaucrats and how they affect modern governance. This book is organized around the major themes of professionalism, bureaucracy, governance, and the relationship between career bureaucrats/higher civil servants and political appointees/politicians under presidential and parliamentary systems. After introducing the basic elements of bureaucracies in Part I, the book discusses the relations between bureaucrats and politicians in presidential systems in Part II as well as in parliamentary systems in Part III. This original and up-to-date book will fill a gap in the literature on the relationship between bureaucrats and politicians in modern governance and public administration. It can be used as a primary or supplementary text at the undergraduate and graduate level for those interested in public administration, comparative public policy, political science, and government.

Professionalism, Bureaucracy, and Modern Governance
Professionalism, bureaucracy, and modern governance

The first set of general themes in this book focuses on the concept of professionalism of the bureaucracy and its implications for modern governance. As discussed in the general introduction, there are several competing theories on the role of a professional bureaucracy in public administration and governance. One theory treats bureaucracy and the professionalization of bureaucracy as a danger to democracy and representative government. The second tendency or theory defends professionalization and the role of the professional bureaucracy as a necessary institution for effective governance. This approach argues that a government that cannot administer efficiently and effectively is a bad government. Only a government equipped with professional competence is a good and effective government. Accordingly, a ...

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