Role of Ethics in Public Administration Essay Sample

Role of Ethics in Public Administration

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Role of Ethics in Public Administration

Introduction

Generally, there is a tendency to expect from a study titled, ‘public administration and ethics’ an analysis of improper ethical actions and illegal conducts in the field. However, this affinity often compels people in the public policy field to develop a rather inappropriate approach, including evaluating of the unacceptable actions of the public administrators alongside other negative occurrences such as bribery, corruption and misuse of public funds (Chapman and Chapman, 2014). Nevertheless, there are a number of great reasons for this. Unethical behaviors alongside acts of public administrators in governmental bodies often work to undermine the trust of the people. In addition, ethical scandals at various points of the government lead to the development of suspicion, especially among those that create public policy and those implementing such policies. In fact, these scandals are often an insult to the intelligence of the people. A number of individuals do not also understand that public administration is an ethical field.  Therefore, this study seeks to present the role of public administration.

Public Administration Definition

Public administration is defined as the determined action that is taken in pursuit of a conscious purpose. Marx explains that public administration is the systematic ordering of things as well as the calculated application of resources, which is aimed at making those happen which one needs to happen. Fredrick Lane also defined public administration as organizing as well as maintaining human and fiscal resources in efforts to achieve an organization’s goals ((Chapman and Chapman, 2014).

White L D argues that public administration comprises of all those operations whose purpose is to enforce the public policy. Wilson Woodrow also defines public administration as a detailed as well as systematic utilization of law. However, someone can also argue that public administration is nothing but the policies, rules, regulations as well as practices that are in action to attain a particular objective.

On the other hand, a comprehensive understanding or definition of what is exactly meant by public administration is difficult to arrive because of the diversity of tasks that fall under it. Some researchers believe that all the government related tasks fall under this category, whereas other researcher hold that only the executive aspect of the government functioning should comprise of the public administration. Thus, different authors define ‘public administration’ differently (Chapman and Chapman, 2014).

Looking at the different definitions from different authors, one can conclude that public administration may be divorced from political as well as social system; however, it cannot be separated. Another definition from Nigro F holds that public administration is a cooperative group effort in terms of public setting. Nigro’s definition particularly captures all the three aspects of the government machinery, including the executive, judicial as well as the legislative (Chapman and Chapman, 2014). Negro further added that because public administration performs an important function in the formulation of policies, it is part of the political process too.

Ethics Definition

The term ‘ethics’ denotes to the principals through which to evaluate behavior as being right or wrong, good or bad. It also refers to well based principles of right and wrong, as well as prescribes what people should do. In particular, ethics are continues efforts of trying to ensure that individuals and institutions they shape perform up to the standards that are required of them. Ethics is also classified into two broad areas, including normative as well as descriptive ethics. In particular, normative ethics concerns the standards for the rightness and wrongness of actions, whiles descriptive ethics aims at investigating people’s moral concerns (Cox, (2015).

The law is regarded as one basic promoter of ethical behavior. However, it only sets the minimum standard for ethical behavior. Moreover, just because an action is lawful, it does not routinely imply that it is ethical. Similarly, an unlawful action does not necessarily mean that it is immoral (Cox, (2015).

Ethics and Governance

The field of ethics is increasing gaining prominence in the dialogue about governance in the world today. There have been numerous views that the standards within the public life are declining. Therefore, this contributes to a number of concerns, especially regarding the costs of bad behavior particularly on the part of those that have been entrusted with protecting public interests and resources. Consequently, these costs comprise of the losses in terms of trust and confidence in public institutions as well as losses in important resources, which were meant to help the economic and social growth of people. There have been efforts to restore some level of trust and integrity in public institutions and leaders in efforts to foster better governance and safeguard democracy.

Reasons for Public Sector Ethics

The public sector or the state is the government with all its ministries, departments, services, administrations, government businesses as well as other institutions. The public sector is made up of two core components; at the political level there are the political institutions where policies are made and the main decisions are made. In addition, at the administrative level there is the public sector administration, which is in charged with implementing these policies. This implementation stage is also referred to as the civil service or government administration and sometimes can also be called bureaucracy.

The difference between politics as well as administration is not completely clear, however, since the administration also have rather some discretionary powers. The public sector activities also range from delivering social security, managing the urban management in addition to organizing national defense, particularly for the provision of health and infrastructure. Hypothetically, there is no boundary to what the government can achieve. There is, however, much discussions on how much the government need to interfere, both in economic sectors as well as in the private life of their people. This is a political inquiry, and the discussion regarding the role and the size of the government and the public sector (rather than the private sector) is almost certainly the single most central distinction in political philosophy, with the socialists favoring greater government intervention, libertarians supporting only minimum government participation (especially in security as well as property defense), while conservatives and liberals are often in support of government taking part in a number of aspects of the society, but not others.

Codes for Behavior as well as Ethics

A code of behavior is a set of rules that outline the tasks of or correct conduct for people and institutions. Some of the related concepts are codes of ethics as well as honor codes. Besides, there are a number of explanations for what is meant by ‘cod,’ but one definition is that a ‘code of conduct’ is the principles, standards, rules and regulations of behavior, which guide people’s actions, procedures and systems in a manner that leads to the general welfare of all, and respects the rights of other people.

A number of international and national institutions have also designed codes of behavior or ethics for their workers. Therefore, this ethical standard setting is to a greater degree based on the Weberian theories. Moreover, it can be a critical guide to arriving at decisions and conduct, especially on complex ethical situations, and these codes can offer the basis for a place in which people are mindful of the basic rules of engagement to be expected of them. Furthermore, the international codes of behavior may also support and foster national public sector laws and statutes, which may also additionally add to the national legal frameworks of countries.

One of the international laws would be the international code of behavior of public officials that was adopted by the UN general assembly in the year 1966. On the other hand, the widely recognized of these codes include the model codes of conduct for the public officials designed by the Council of Europe and adopted by its member states in 2000. These set of conduct often serve as the reference point and are ideal for numerous country administrations. In addition, these codes are also meant to set an example for nations developing their own compulsory codes of behavior. However, most of the standards have a close resemblance to the UN code of conduct, with the Council of Europe going further into aspects of public service behavior related to anti-corruption policies.

In particular, the Council of Europe’s model of behavior applies to all the public administrators, which further implies that people employed by the public authorities and every public servant have the responsibility to take all the required measures to comply with the provisions of the code. The main function of the code is to spell out the standards of honesty and behaviors that are to be followed by public administrators, to assist them meet those standards as well as to inform the public of the behavior expected of them.

The general standards of the code requires (among other principles) that the public servants carry out their duties in accordance with the laid down laws, and with those accepted instructions and ethical provisions, which related to their functions. In addition, public administrators are also required to act in a politically neutral way and never try to frustrate the legitimate policies and actions of the public authorities. What is more, public officials are also tasked with the duty to serve loyally the lawfully made national, local or regional authority, where they are expected to be honest, impartial as well as effective when performing their duties to ensure the best of their abilities and skills (Sheeran, 2006).

The code similarly requires that in the performance of their duties, the public administrators must not in any way act subjectively to the disadvantage of other people, groups or organization and that they should have due respect for the rights, obligations and appropriate interests of others. In decision making, these public officials are also supposed to act legally and perform their discretionary powers in an impartial manner; therefore, taking into consideration only those matters that are regarded relevant.

Democratic Standards

In addition to the international laws and standards that originate from the Weberian bureaucracy model, the international human rights as well as other international regulations, and international model of codes of behavior, another important source of public sector ethics is the democratic principles. According to Fleming and McNamee (2005), in understanding the conduct of people in a society, one has to consider the political environment of policy as well as practice. In particular, democratic principles are in part codified within the political human rights, and in part, expressed as an idyllic form of government. Based on this, these democratic principles are most applicable as the ethical basis for leaders, politicians, as well as elected people; however, the standards can also serve as a reference point for bureaucrats and other public administrators. Though, there are a number of dilemmas within the administrative implementation of regulations, which are not determined using the democratic qualities of the state.

Democratic Rule

Democracy is regarded as a form of government in which the citizens hold power under a fair and free electoral process. Within the political theory and political philosophy, the term ‘democracy’ is regarded as being a utopian model – that no nation is fully democratic, and that democratic principles are often worthy striving for (Sheeran, 2006). Despite the fact that there is no generally established description of what is meant by democracy, there are two important principles, which any understanding of democracy entails. The first principle is that all people in any society have an equal access to power. The second principle is that all the members of the society do enjoy the generally recognized rights and freedoms. Therefore, these rights and freedoms comprise of the freedom to assembly, freedom of association, freedom of expression and religion, equality before the law, the rule of law and the general suffrage (United Nations and Colloquium on Promoting Ethics in the Public Service, 2000).

Principles for Managing Ethics in Public Service

The principle is that ethical standards for public service must be clear. I particular, the public servants and administrators are required to understand the basic principles as well as standards they are expected to apply in the dispensation of their mandate, and where the boundaries of accepted actions lie. Besides, a precise and well-recognized statement of the core ethical principles that guide the public service, for instance in the form of codes of conduct, may achieve this through designing a shared understanding across the government and within the larger society (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development,1998).

Ethical standards must also be reflected in the legal frameworks across the board. The legal framework is fundamentally the basis for communicating the minimum obligatory standards as well as principles of actions for each of the public servants in the public service. In addition, the laws and regulations could also state the major values of the public service and must seek to offer the framework for guidance, disciplinary actions, investigation as well as prosecution.

Ethical guidance must also be available to the public servants. In particular, the professional socialization must also contribute into the development of the necessary judgment as well as skills that enable the public servants to use ethical standards in concrete situations. In addition, training facilitates ethics awareness and may develop the necessary skills for ethical analysis in addition to moral reasoning. Thus, impartial decisions may assist in creating an environment in which the public servants are more willing and able to confront and resolve any ethical tensions and problems arising from any situation. Guidance and internal consultation mechanisms must also be made available in efforts to enable the public administrators apply the basic ethical principles, not only within their workplace, but also in other areas of concern (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 1998).

The political commitments to ethics must reinforce the ethical conducts of the public servants and administrators. Largely, the political leaders are responsible for maintaining the greatest standard of propriety in their discharge of official duties and responsibilities. In particular, their commitment is often shown through example and through taking actions that are only available at the political levels (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 1998); for instance, creating legislative and institutional arrangements, which foster ethical actions in addition to creating sanctions against misconduct, especially by availing enough support or resources for ethics-associated activities throughout the government agencies.

The decision-making process should also be open to scrutiny and transparent. In this sense, the public has the right to know and get involved in public institutions and how public servants apply their power and resources entrusted over them. Besides, public scrutiny should also be facilitated through democratic as well as transparent processes. In particular, transparency must also be further promoted through measures including disclosure of systems as well as recognition of the functions of active and independent media.

Challenges in the management of ethics

Greater standards and principles of conduct within the public service have become a major concern for a number of governments in the OECD member states. In particular, public management reforms entailing greater devolution of responsibility or discretion for public officials, budgetary pressures as well as new forms of delivery of public services have especially challenged traditional values within the public service. Therefore, globalization and development of the international economic relations, including trade as well as investment often demand greater recognizable principles of behavior in the public service. This means that preventing bad conduct becomes as complicated as the phenomenon of misconduct itself and a wide range of incorporated mechanisms are similarly demanded for success, such as sound ethics management systems.

Ethics management system

Increased concerns regarding the decrease of confidence in government as well as corruption has led many governments to review their approaches to ethical behavior and conduct. In particular, responding to these challenges, the public management committee often agrees to a set of standards for managing ethics within the public service, in order to assist nations to review their institutions, systems as well as mechanisms they possess for facilitating public service ethics. Furthermore, these standards also identify the functions of governance, management or even control against which the public ethics management approaches may be checked and scrutinized. It is also important to note that they also draw from the experiences of the OECD nations, and reflect the shared perspectives of sound ethics management (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 1998).

Determinants of ethics in Public Service

The main determinants of administrative behavior in the public sector include the political construct in which the public servants are a part, the people and users of the public services that are part of the society, the legal framework, as well as the administrators and public workers that are charged with the provision of public services.

The determinants of ethics within the public service administration with regard to the individual attributes of the civil servants include ethical decision-making skills, virtues and professional values, as well as mental attitudes. In addition, the organizational structure dimension is also explained using clear accountability, dissent channels, participation and collaborative processes. Besides, the political organizational culture also comprises of the artifacts, values, assumptions as well as beliefs. Leadership is fundamentally important in the development, adaptation as well as maintenance of organizational culture. Similarly, ethical conduct is facilitated whenever organizations have climates in which personal standards and worker education are focused, where supervisors often emphasize the truth, and where workers also often come together to discuss ethical issues. To this end, societal expectations usually includes laws, regulations, participation of the general public, and strict abidance of laid down policies.

The Different Principles of Ethics

It also very critical to focus on the two leading models (including the ethics of the sovereign model as well as the ethics of the service of goods), which are involved with ethical behaviors and actions within the public service. The ethics of the sovereign good is essentially the set of guidelines or principles based on which individual behaviors (Sheeran, 2006). In addition, the ethics of the sovereign good is also identified to be the set of values from where different perspectives regarding what is good may be judged from. It may also be seen that in the real situations that a number of people bear different versions of the same ethical concept. Individuals attempt to twist the concept in efforts to fit into their needs based on their views of what is good. Thus, it is imperative to identify the views that hold the true spirit of the ethical standards.

According to Maesschalk (2001), the public administration can be called as principled morality. Michael further argues that one should not behave on the principles set by the ethics of the sovereign good. According to Maesschalk (2001), it is not all conflicts that may be resolved through basing them on the ethics that are prescribed in the sovereign good. He argues that this is because ethics fail to take into consideration a large number of variables, which other principles use in similar scenarios.   

Under the ethics of the service of goods, the values that are facilitated using the ethics of the service of goods are largely efficiency as well as maximization of the different inputs to outputs. Fundamentally, there are three main aspects, which are critical when it comes to the service of goods. At its core, service of goods is based on what is referred to as ‘mutual exchange’. It essentially assumes that individuals are rational beings and have the right to choose what goods or services they need (Sheeran, 2006). Therefore, if one likes a specific good or service, he or she may enter into an agreement with a suitable trader on the terms for the purchase of the same products.

References

Clark, G. L., Prior, J. E., & Caldow, W. (1997). Accountability and corruption: Public sector ethics. St. Leonards, N.S.W: Allen & Unwin.

Chapman, R. A., & Chapman, P. R. A. (2014). Ethics in Public Service. Montréal: McGill-Queen’s University Press.

Cox, R. W. (2015). Ethics and integrity in public administration: Concepts and cases. New York: Taylor & Francis.

Fleming, S., & McNamee, M. (January 01, 2005). The ethics of corporate governance in public sector organizations. Public Management Review, 7, 1, 135-144.

Geuras, D., & Garofalo, C. (2010). Practical ethics in public administration. Vienna, VA: Management Concepts.

Maesschalk J .(2001). Towards an understanding of the impact of new public management reforms on the ethical/unethical behavior of civil servants, a conceptual framework. Paper presented at the 29th ECPR Joint Sessions of W orkshops, Grenoble, France.

Lane, J.-E. (2000). The public sector: Concepts, models, and approaches. London: Sage Publications.

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. (1998). Principles for managing ethics in the public service: OECD recommendation. Paris: OECD Public Management Service.

Sheeran, P. J. (2006). Ethics in public administration: A philosophical approach. Jaipur: Rawat Publications.

United Nations., & Colloquium on Promoting Ethics in the Public Service. (2000). Promoting ethics in the public service. New York: United Nations.