Customer Reviews

Inside Bureaucracy

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This is a carefully thought out analysis of bureaucracies. It is good at explaining the dynamics within bureaucracies and the motivating forces of their inhabitants, or stakeholders as we might call them today. For example, in describing advocates, one of the types of inhabitant of a bureaucracy according to the Downsian analysis, he says "The fourth principle of the advocate's behaviour is that they favor innovation because they seek to expand the operations of the organizations to which they are loyal. Like climbers [another Downsian type] they are a dynamic force in bureaus. However, they are simultaneously more conservative and more radical than climbers. They are more conservative because their loyalty leads them to oppose change that might benefit them personally but injure their organizations. They are more radical because they are willing to promote views that might antagonize their superior if so doing will help their organizations."

Today when government and quasi-government bureaus have a greater hold around the neck of the ordinary person than ever before in what used to be called free societies, it is a shame that Downs' work and ideas like his are not more current in the electorate's discussion and analysis of what our governments are up to.

I recommend this book.

"EPICTETUS"

I received this book on time. The cover was a bit more damaged than expected. Overall condition of the book was fine.