Question 1

Some political systems charge administrators with overseeing the range of policies and their implementation in local or regional settings. The French use the term ____________ for these administrators.

Accepted Answer

prefect

Question 2

Modern bureaucracy takes many of its qualities from early French and Prussian military systems that wanted to ensure that supplies and distribution of military wares were reliably and effectively provided.

Accepted Answer

This is true. Modern bureaucracy developed from the military systems of France and Prussia in the 18th and 19th centuries, which were designed to ensure efficient and reliable supply and distribution of military resources. Max Weber, a German sociologist, developed the concept of bureaucracy and drew heavily on these early military models in his analysis.

Question 3

In early nineteenth-century America, the government bureaucracy was characterized by:

Accepted Answer

The spoils system, where government officials rewarded their supporters with government jobs, was a prevalent feature of the government bureaucracy in early nineteenth-century America. Efficiency, honesty, hard work, and high levels of expertise were not necessarily prominent characteristics of the bureaucracy at the time.

Question 4

Bureaucracies in modern systems have conquered the problem of protected incompetence.

Accepted Answer

Despite efforts to improve efficiency and accountability, bureaucracies in modern systems often still struggle with issues of protected incompetence, where inefficient or underperforming employees or processes are shielded by complex rules, regulations, and tenure systems.

Question 5

On an everyday basis, people in society are more directly affected by decisions made by non-elected, minor administrators or bureaucrats than by the top executive leadership of a country.

Accepted Answer

This is because non-elected administrators and bureaucrats are responsible for implementing policies and regulations at the local and regional levels, which directly affect the daily lives of citizens. The top executive leadership sets the overall direction and tone, but they delegate the responsibility of carrying out their decisions to lower-level officials.

Question 6

What conditions prompted bureaucracy reforms in the nineteenth century? What were the five key characteristics of reformed bureaucracy?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What conditions prompted bureaucracy reforms in the...

Question 7

Which of the following is NOT one of the five characteristics of good public administration?

Accepted Answer

The five characteristics of good public administration are: 
1. Bureaucrats do not exercise arbitrary power in implementing policies 
2. Bureaucrats have flexibility in dealing with special cases 
3. There is an honest and accurate reflection of political leaders' decisions in bureaucratic actions and policies 
4. Bureaucracies are efficient 
5. Top administrators provide advice to political leaders when requested. Therefore, choice D is not one of the characteristics of good public administration.

Question 8

What are the five characteristics of good public administration? List each and then discuss how well they can be approximated in democratic countries and authoritarian countries.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are the five characteristics of good...

Question 9

Which of the qualities of an effective bureaucrat would you argue is the MOST important?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the qualities of an effective...

Question 10

The civil service in many developed political systems comprise between 10% and 25% of the entire country's labor force.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. The exact percentage varies depending on the country and the definition of "civil service," but it is generally within this range.

Question 11

Public administrators as a group are too numerous and individually too unimportant to be controlled effectively.

Accepted Answer

Public administrators, due to their large numbers and relative lack of individual power, are difficult to effectively control or manage.

Question 12

Creating a government official whose primary duty is to seek out citizens' complaints of abuse by public administrators and to remedy those abuses is common in many systems. The office created is called ____________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Creating a government official whose primary duty...

Question 13

In the United States, these people are most likely to serve the role of ombudsman:

Accepted Answer

The answer of In the United States, these people are...

Question 14

Since 1950, the number of civilian public employees in the United States:

Accepted Answer

The number of civilian public employees in the United States increased dramatically since 1950, primarily at the state and local levels, due to the expansion of public services such as education, health care, and transportation. However, there was also a significant increase at the federal level, especially in the 1960s and 1970s, due to the establishment of new agencies and programs related to social welfare, environmental protection, and national security.

Question 15

Your text claims that bureaucracy nurtures flexibility by giving so many players a role in the political process.

Accepted Answer

Bureaucracy is often criticized for being rigid and inflexible due to its bureaucratic procedures and rule-bound decision-making. The involvement of too many players in the political process can further slow down decision-making and hinder flexibility.

Question 16

Those legions of people in government who are responsible for carrying out the implementation of policies are called ____________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Those legions of people in government who...

Question 17

Your text suggests that the characteristics of effective public administration include: honest, accurate translation of policy decisions; flexibility dealing with special cases; feedback on workability of policies; and from a budget perspective, _______________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Your text suggests that the characteristics of...

Question 18

Critical Thinking
Your text raises the notion of a "representative bureaucracy." Presumably at its heart this means that the people fleshing out the bureaucracy would have the demographic characteristics of the general population. Given the challenges and responsibilities of any bureaucracy, is making the bureaucracy more reflective of the general community likely to produce more positive performance by public administrators? Is anything sacrificed in constructing the bureaucracy this way?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Critical Thinking
Your text raises the notion of...

Quiz 16: Bureaucracy and the Public Sector