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sultan_presentation_1-2.pptResponsible Administration: Chapter 10
Sultanand rania
Whitebeck’s Design Approach
Limitations of Whitebeck’s design approach:
Does not cover all the work of public administration as it only focus on the analysis of ethical problems and making ethical decisions.
Ethical Problem
Four solution to an ethical problem
The design ethical solution must take into account the organizational setting in which the problem emerges and in which the administrator work.
The design for solving an ethical problem must consider the organizational structure and cultures.
The design focus should consider organizational structure changes that will be more supportive of ethical conduct and has less resistant.
The design strategic thinking resolves managerial ethical problem.
The application of Whitebeck’s design approach only focusses on two main areas that is ethical problem and making ethical decisions but this two main focus do not take place in vacuum (Cooper, 255). Due to this limitation there is need for the use of components of responsible conduct which considers the situation of the administrator and the key elements of the administrator’s work environment. As a result, the ethical problem solution need to consider the organizational setting in which the problem emerges and in which the administrator works. The design for solving an ethical problem must consider the organizational structure and cultures, it should pose less resistance to the organizational structure and supportive to the ethical conduct. The design need be strategic for it to solve the managerial ethical problem (Cooper, 256).
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Previous Chapters Summary
Chapter One: Public Administrator Responsibility
The main responsibility of public administrator falls into two main conflicting objectives;
Objective responsibility:-what the organizational hierarchy or the law hold them accountable for.
Subjective responsibility:-what they feel and believe themselves to be responsible for within organization.
The classification of the objective conflicts includes:
Conflict of authority
Role conflict
Conflict of interest
Chapter Two: Administrator’s Ethical Identities
How administrator ethical identities emerges
From the pattern of decision they make over the course of career
By making decisions not based on their ethical dimensions
By cultivating process of systematic reflection as ethical dilemmas emerge from modern society's contending interests and obligations.
Through contemplating real moral problem from the abstract where characters is formed.
In the previous chapters, the vision that emerges is the responsibility of public administrator. The public administrators do have competing obligations and interest created with the conflicting objective of their responsibilities. First the public administrator do have the primary objective which is the organization hierarchy or the law hold them accountable for as their responsibility. At the same time the public administrator (subjective responsibility) believe and feeling of what their responsibility is within the organization might make them act in an odd way from the previously assigned responsibility (Cooper, 256). The decisions administrators make during their career course determines the level of their ethical increment (Cooper 257). The decision making needs guidance from coherent and widely shared tradition, public administrator like all modern public people. The four level for deliberating and reflecting about ethical issues need to be based on the expressive level, moral value level, ethical and postethical level. The ethical level is essential as the public administrator moves higher in the organizational responsibility as it enables them to be rationally accountable for their conduct.
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Four levels of reflecting and deliberating on ethical issues
The expressive level-response is purely emotional
Moral value level-organizational axioms of conduct are presented
Ethical analysis level-examining the underlying ethical principles
Postethical level- consideration of basic assumptions
Chapter Three: Public Administrator vs. Citizen
What need to be done on the tension between Public Administrator and the Citizen
Both must be obtained and served
Reasons for conflict
The public administrator being both a citizen and employee of the citizenry.
In chapter Three, the role of public administrator and citizen were identified by the author. The public administrator and the citizen mostly do have tension between them but both must be obtained if the public administrator is to behave responsibly. (Cooper 257). The public administrator wears two hats that is for the citizen and the employee of the citizenry and this obligation at times give rise to conflict between the obligation to citizenry and the organization established to serve the citizenry.
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Chapter Four: Public Administrator Ethics
key component to public administrator
Responsibility.
Types of responsibility confronting Public Administrator
Subjective responsibility
Objective responsibility
Effects of subjective and objective responsibility
Makes the tasks complex and stressful
In chapter four, the key component of ethics to the Public Administrator is responsibility. Public Administrator’s subjective and objective responsibilities are always confronted by the ethical problems and these dual components always make the task of Public Administrator complex and stressful. Public Administrator task becomes more complex when compounded by conflicts among many roles which come as a result of multiple responsibilities in a single role (Cooper 259).
In chapter four, the key component of ethics to the Public Administrator is responsibility. Public Administrator’s subjective and objective responsibilities are always faced by the ethical problems and these components always make the task of Public Administrator complex and difficult. Public Administrator task becomes more complex when compounded by conflicts among many roles which come as a result of multiple responsibilities in a single role
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Chapter Five: Public Administration and Conflict
Three most common conflicts of administration
Conflict of authority- for example, handling conflict created by structures conflicting like law contradicting organization structure
Role conflicts-example role conflict between work responsibility and as a superior and
Conflicts of interest- include bribery, gifts and entertainment.
Chapter six and Seven: Managerial Perspective
Techniques for shaping a member of public organization conduct
The four areas to pay attention includes:- Organizational structure, societal expectations, organizational culture, individual attributes and organizational culture.
Chapter Eight: Self-Serving Tendencies
Worries in organizations
The self-serving tendencies of bureaucratic structures
In chapter five, the author addressed the most common conflict of administrative responsibility which included; conflict of interest, role conflicts, and conflict of interest. Conflict of interest is associated with bribery, entertainment, and gifts. The conflict between different organizations such as the law, organization superiors, elected officials do pose conflict of authority to the administrator if they impose conflicting objectives. As administrator, their values can conflict with their roles example been superior role conflicting the subordinate role owned by the same person, or the parental values conflicting with role responsibility at work place (Cooper 259).
In chapter six and seven, the author looks into the managerial perspective which involves concern for maintaining responsible conduct on the part of doubly bound individual. Chapter six talks of the technique focusses on the internal and external control as general approaches and in chapter six looks into specific techniques which includes four areas to be examined. These areas to pay attention includes; organizational structure, societal expectations, organizational culture, and individual attributes.
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Public organizations running out of control due to loss of sight of legitimate goals.
The citizens not acting on organization behalf because they are intimidated into silence by unethical supervisors.
Elements that are necessary to preserve individual ethical autonomy in public organizations includes;
The conscious delimitation of commitment
Legal institutional protection for individual rights and conscience
An ethical awareness
The cultivation of principled thinking
Chapter Nine: Whitebeck’s Design Approach in Public Administration.
The importance of Whitebeck’s design approach;
Help in creativity thinking in the larger context in which ethical problem occur
Can be applied to solve scandals example been Abu Ghraib prison scandal
In chapter eight, worries of the self-serving tendencies of large, bureaucratic structures is discussed . The citizens failures within the organizations are assumed to not work towards the favor of the organization due to either organization fail to look into legitimate issues. The structure may also never take place at all after the resolution of the conflict between the organization and the citizenry. To prevent this, elements that are necessary to preserve individual ethical autonomy in public organizations includes; the conscious delimitation of commitment, legal institutional protection for individual rights and conscience, an ethical awareness and the cultivation of principled thinking. Chapter nine looks into Whitebeck’s design approach application in Abu Ghraib prison and governmental scandals. The importance of this design approach is that it helps in creativity thinking in the larger context in which ethical problem occur.
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A Model of Responsible Administration
Areas it should address
It should design an environment for engaging in ethical analysis and act accordingly.
Administrative ethics should address concerns of any practical impact.
A general model should recognized the obligations of organization and citizen roles.
What is a Model of Responsible Administration
This model identifies elements that together can provide corrective forces if incongruence occurs.
It represent field of forces that can create checks and balances on organizational problems likes corruption, tyranny and individual corruption.
Structure of A Model of Responsible Administration
It has three main column namely
Threat
Organizational Actions
Individual Actions
A model of responsible administration is a template for designing an environment in which one can engage in ethical analysis and at the same time acts accordingly. The administrative ethics must address these contextual concerns to have any practical impact. To a general model that recognized the obligations of organization and citizen roles, is developed by combining the components of responsible conduct and the components of individual autonomy. With this, such a model recognizes the obligations of the organizational and citizen roles, however the assumption is that the priority of the citizen role must ultimately be maintained (Cooper 260). The table of model of responsible administration has three columns that is the left-hand column list the organizational and the individual threats to responsible administration.
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Responsible Administration Action
| Threats | Organizational Actions | Individual Actions |
| Corruption | Maintain and develop knowledge of the organization, its mission, and its policy arena. Make decisions consistent with the legally mandated mission of the organization. Comply with the organization’s informal norms and procedures. Work within the specialized structure of the organization. | Maintain and develop knowledge of one’s own values, beliefs, convictions, worldview, and life priorities. Offer proposals for legislative changes in the organizational mission based on public preferences, demands, and interests. Propose changes in norms rules, regulations, and procedures based on public preference, demands, and interests; professional judgement; or personal conscience. Encourage collaboration among units with other organizations, elected officials, and the public. |
| Tyranny/hubris | Act within the provisions of current codes and ethics legislation. Acknowledge accountability to the hierarchal structure of the organization | Act within the value of the political community and personal conscience. Question, resist, and challenge orders inconsistent with the mission of the organization, professional codes, or values of political conscience and offer proposals for legal and institutional protections from retaliation. |
| Self-service | Maintain and enhance the knowledge of the professional field systems. Commit energy and time to the work of the organization, its mission, and its policy arena. Exercise the best technical judgement. | Maintain and develop current knowledge of the social, political, and economic systems. Maintain the cultivate family, social, and community relationships. Provide for regular and accessible public participation. |
These are the responsible Administration Actions of these threats. First, Corruption in Organizational Actions its Maintain and develop knowledge of the organization, its mission, and its policy arena.
And in the Individual Actions its Maintain and develop knowledge of one’s own values, beliefs, convictions, worldview, and life priorities. Second, Tyranny/hubris in Organizational Actions its Act within the provisions of current codes and ethics legislation. And in the Individual Actions its Act within the value of the political community and personal conscience. Third, Self-service in Organizational Actions its Maintain and enhance the knowledge of the professional field systems. And in the Individual Actions its Maintain and develop current knowledge of the social, political, and economic systems.
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Table Discussion
Case study
chapter 7 and 8: The officers whistle blowing actions
Possible reasons behind the young officer who blew the whistle to his chief for stealing at crime scene
His self-awareness and conscience would not allow his own ethical properties pushed him from corruption and ignore it
| Tension | organizational Actions | Individual Action |
| Corruption Stealing | Maintain and develop knowledge of the organization, its mission, and its policy arena. The organizational requirements Record the incidence to evidence log Report the case to the chief, internal affair or district attorney | Maintain and develop knowledge of one’s own values, beliefs, convictions, worldview, and life priorities. The officer’s action Blew the whistle to his chief for stealing at crime scene. Reasons Self-awareness Conscience Ethical properties |
In chapter seven and eights the young officer who blew the whistle, is an example of constructive tension between one’s own ethical conviction and knowledge of. The officer new what the organization expected of him, which involved either reporting the crime in evidence log, or either reporting the case to the chief, internal affair or district attorney. His self-awareness and conscience would not allow his own ethical properties pushed him from corruption and ignore it.
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Public Administrator
Obligations/responsibilities for public administrator
They are obligated to offer proposals to their organizational superiors.
Propose changes when controls become problematic for the wishes of the public, inconsistent with the professional judgement, or in conflict with personal conscience.
Public administrator must work with the specialized structure of the employing organization.
Should encourage collaboration rather than competition with other unit, organizations, elected officials, and the public.
Should call for collaboration for more important public values and objectives.
Should acknowledge their accountability to the hierarchical structure of the organization.
They are obligated to question, resist, and challenge orders that are inconsistent with the mission of the organization, established professional codes, the values of the political community, or their own conscience.
They must maintain accountability to the citizenry, professional colleagues, and their own principles.
Superiors should contribute to the development of the development of institutional arrangements that will provide reasonable protection for administrators offering such challenges to superiors.
Individual responsibility needs to be buttressed with supportive mechanisms for whistle-blowers when such action becomes necessary.
Maintain and enhance knowledge of the professional field.
From the case of the young officer in chapter seven and eight to that of highway in need of widening for safety of young pedestrians (chapter 4), the obligation of public administrator are brought out clearly. In the young soldier, is individual responsibility requires him to buttressed with supportive mechanisms for whistle-blowers when such action becomes necessary like the case of the chief theft. Example in chapter for, a responsible administrator need to feel some obligation to do more rather than simply plod along for two years while children are left at risk. Example between men and women in the work place is one of the problematic informal norms that have been confronted in recent years. Such kind of confrontation (gender roles related) where men assumes that women working with them would do such things as make coffee for staff or take notes in meetings, though the roles are not included in their job description requires structural solution. This involves public administrator must work with the specialized structure of the employing organization. Together with other examples, public administrator need to contribute to the development of the development of institutional arrangements that will provide reasonable protection for administrators offering such challenges to superiors. They are also obligated to propose changes when controls become problematic for the wishes of the public, inconsistent with the professional judgement, or in conflict with personal conscience among other roles (Cooper 262-266).
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Importance of maintaining and enhancing the knowledge of the professional field for public administrator.
It enables the public administrator to build a competent basis of perceiving alternative course of action.
It enable the public administrator to do self-evaluation
The roles helps in evaluating employees performance
it makes public administrator more aware of the economic consequences of our administrative actions.
It enables public administrator be an integral part of the larger political, economic, and social context.
Administrator’s of Public Business
What they should do in their position;
They should exercise their best technical judgement when tackling complex situations.
Their technical expertise must be complemented with the intelligence gathered from citizenry through regular an effective opportunities for participation.
They should have comprehensive review and treatment of the relevant aspects of an organization's structure and which it operates.
A long-term commitment to a plan for organizational and personnel development based on such a review will produce far more significant results than sporadic efforts.
The case of Marie Ragghianti, discussed chapter eight illustrates situations for the balancing set obligations. Having exhausted all the resources within her organizational hierarchy in the case where court pardons were been sold to someone from the governor office she reported the case of the governor to FBI herself. She upheld defiant for corruption by upholding the oath of office. She maintain and enhance knowledge of the professional field thus making her be an integral part of the larger political, economic, and social context and evaluate employees performance (Cooper 267).
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Work Cited
Cooper, Terry L. "responsible Administrator : an Approach to Ethics for the Administrative Role, Sixth Edition". 6th ed., 2012.
