Bureaucracy A large, complex organization composed of appointed officials in which authority is divided among several managers Term comes from French word “bureau” meaning a government worker’s desk and “cracy” meaning a form of government Approximately 4 million government workers in federal bureaucracy, about 1/3 of whom work in armed forces or defense agencies

The Bureaucracy Constitutional basis found in Article II of the Constitution in reference to the creation of executive departments Bureaucracies developed as a result of custom, traditions, and precedents

Primary Functions of a Bureaucracy Recognizable division of labor where skilled workers each have a specialized function so that productivity is increased Allocation of function where each task is assigned and defined Allocation of responsibility where each task is understood by the worker and cannot be changed without approval of the supervisor Direct and indirect supervision including time authority and staff authority Control of the full time employment of the worker so workers can be held on task Workers make their careers synonymous with the organization because the bureaucracy provides for benefits

Organization Federal government organized be departments (called that to distinguish them from the cabinet) Agencies/administrations = government bodies headed by a single administrator, have similar status to the cabinet Commissions = agencies that regulate certain aspects of the private sector Corporations = agencies headed by a board of directors, chairman

Distinctiveness of the American Bureaucracy Political authority over the bureaucracy is shared by the president and Congress Federal agencies share functions with related state and local government agencies Adversary culture leads to closer scrutiny and makes court challenges more likely

Factors that Influence Bureaucratic Conduct Recruitment and reward Personal attributes Nature of the job External forces

The Growth of the Bureaucracy 1789 Congress gave president power to remove officials without Congressional assent Civil War showed administrative weakness of federal government, increased demands for civil service reform Led to enormous amounts of bureaucratic growth Post-Civil War period saw industrialization, emergence of a national economy 1861-1901 agencies served primarily service roles Wars led to increase in executive branch personnel Bureaucracy’s role has changed with Depression, WWII, and 9/11 Public believes in continuing military preparedness and various social programs