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The American New State of Mary Parker Follett International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology Vol. 3(3) pp.101-108, March 2011 Available online http://www.academicjournals.org/ijsa ISSN 2006- 988x ©2011 Academic Journals Review The American New State of Mary Parker Follett Wasim I. Al-Habil College of Commerce, The Islamic University, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Gaza. E-mail: [email protected]. Accepted February 2, 2011 This research tries to answer one of the major questions that has been discussed in the literature of Public Administration (PA) repeatedly. The question is: Has 21st century American government succeeded in achieving a genuinely democratic administration where efficiency and democratic values are reconciled? The main argument of this research is that it has not been possible in spite of the calls of many public administration theories which have encouraged the adoption of Follett’s equation based on the partnership between efficient government and active citizen participation. The research argues that Follett’s assertion sounds rather optimistic but it has not been implemented seriously on the ground. Key words: Public administration, efficient government, and active citizen participation. INTRODUCTION It seems that the main point Mary Parker Follett tried to encouraged the adoption of Follett’s equation based on assert is one of the basic concepts that have shaped the the partnership between efficient government and active field of public administration (PA) since Woodrow (1887) citizen participation. The research argues that Follett’s established PA as a field of study. Follett believes that assertion sounds rather optimistic but it has not been the notions of active citizenship and efficient government implemented seriously on the ground. are not opposed but partners in American political life. Students of PA can obviously see that PA exists within She argues that both administrative responsibility and the tension of efficiency and democracy. This research expert service constitute genuine democracy. With her will start by giving a brief idea about citizen participation belief of a genuinely democratic administration, Follett and explain Follett’s argument and its echoes in the was an exception of her time known as the Orthodoxy recent literature. Then it will provide a brief history of period (McSwite, 1997: 164). The progressive movement American public administration with an emphasis on the and the founding of a rational, objective, scientific, and dichotomy. It will bring the discussion into the context of value neutral administration mark the Orthodoxy Era. 21st century American government. The research will This logical division of value-laden politics and neutral conclude by summarizing the ideas and argue that administrative science is referred to as the politics- despite the current state of neomanagerialism, there are administration dichotomy (Goodnow, 1900). The founda- alternative ideas that help in reconciling bureaucracy tions of public administration were laid within the politics- (administration) and democracy and achieving genuine administration dichotomy framework for decades. democratic administration. This research tries to answer one of the major questions that have been discussed in the literature of PA repeatedly. The question is: Has 21st century American THE OLD IDEA OF CITIZENSHIP government succeeded in achieving a genuinely demo- cratic administration where efficiency and democratic Citizenship, in a general sense, means many things to values are reconciled? The main argument of this many different people. The word citizenship is derived research is that it has not been possible in spite of the from the Latin word “civitas” which means a member, or calls of many public administration theories which have citizen, of a city. Countries, states, provinces and cities 102 Int. J. Sociol. Anthropol. grant persons rights as citizens and expect certain duties to the theme of citizen participation first through Mary from them. Parker Follett in 1940s. Generally, in a very topical sense, a country does not exist until people of certain geographic areas organize politically. Once organized country and its citizens are Follett’s argument never really separated. Conceptually, they act as one. For the purposes of this effort, it describes elementary It is clear from the aforementioned quotation that Follett is considerations of citizenship that are an essential mainly calling for a partnership between public admini- element for understanding the perspective utilized to stration or professionals and citizens. She argues that express an understanding of the question at hand. It is experts are needed for purposes of attaining effeminacy the fourteenth amendment of the U.S. constitution which and that citizens also play an important role in issues provides the principle of the foundation of a citizenry and pertaining to governance and both roles of professionals subsequently an administration for it when it states: and citizens cannot be disputed. She believes that All persons born or naturalized in the United States, experts and citizens play complementary roles in the and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the society and should not be viewed as working against United States and of the state where they reside. each other. She wrote that “politics can no longer be an The idea of citizenship goes back thousands of years. extra-activity of the American people; they must be a The city states of ancient Greece had citizens, slaves or means of satisfying our actual wants” (189). Follett (1998) serfs, and aliens or non-citizens. Greek laws and reminds us that citizens do not exist on one side and traditions gave citizens many privileges, but also heavy government on the other. “It must be clearly seen that we responsibilities. Citizens were expected to vote, to attend can operate as government as well as with government, the assembly, to serve on juries and to give military that the citizen functions through government and the service. Slaves had few rights and aliens had almost government functions through the citizen” (236). Follett’s none, but they did have personal freedom and protection assertion may be based on her pragmatic vision to of the law. harmonize the two different views of modern Some philosophers of ancient Greece called Stoics, administration and liberal democracy, according to Stever followers of a school of philosophy founded in Athens (1986). about 305 B. C. by Zeno of Citium, a city in Cyprus, With regard to the relationship between individuals, regarded all men as brothers (Angeles, 1992: 295). They groups and the state, Follett argues that the group is an did much to promote the expansion of citizenship from expression of the individual will at a higher level while the the few to the many. Christianity with its idea of the state is an extension of the group process at a much equality of man also influenced the growth of the idea of higher level. Fry (1998) summarizes this view succinctly citizenship (World Book Encyclopedia, 1965; A: 44). The by stating that: idea of citizenship declined with the fall of the Romans As the group will is an expression of the individual will and the rise of feudalism. at a higher level of purpose, so too is the state an It is not until the growth of national governments that expression of individual and group will at an even higher people changed the notion of serf and vassal to that of level of purpose. The true state gives rise to the great citizen and national. The U.S. constitution, in the group unified by common end with its sovereignty resting fourteenth amendment, borrowed such conceptualize- on the group process and the principle of integration. As tions of citizenship from British common law and the U. S. such, the state cannot leave us alone, it cannot regulate supreme court fully established the legality of citizenship us, it can only express us in 1898 (Ibid). A worthy political life can be attained only if citizens The role of the citizen in public administration is varied. realize and appreciate the fact that there is no dividing From a positivist frame of reference shaped by a value- line between them and government. She wrote that “it free, standard laden goal is that the citizen is client, one must be clearly seen that we can operate as government to be served by Administration in support of a polity. as well as with government, that the citizen functions From a non-positivist perspective, the citizen is through government and the government functions participant. They are necessary to composite normative through the citizens” (236). She explains that citizens judgments for the delivery of services and allocation of want to be given an opportunity to train in democracy resources. To be clear, these are competing ideologies rather than mere opportunities to exercise democracy. which grasp for the heart and soul of the field of public Citizens want to be actively involved in the organization administration. and management of their local centers so that they can The field of public administration has been discussing use their experience to take their localities to a higher the meaning and the role of the citizens for decades level. As Follett argues that “the state must give people through Paul (1997), George (1971), Cherry and Camilla every opportunity for building up their own full, varied and (1998), Denhardt and Denhardt (2000), and many others. healthful life” (237). She goes further that “the question However, students of public administration are introduced which the state must always be trying to answer is how it Al-Habil 103 can do more for its members at the same time that it is vibrant democratic polity” (Macedo et al., 2005). In the stimulating them to do more for themselves” (237). same vein, Macedo and others observe that alienation of citizens from the decision-making process has led to the fact that citizens failed to participate in the co-production Follett’s echo in recent PA literature of essential goods and services.
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