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The Ethics Primer for Public Administrators in Government and Nonprofit Organizations

Author(s): James H. Svara, PhD, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Details:
  • ISBN-13: 9780763736262
  • ISBN-10:0763736260
  • Paperback    224 pages      © 2007
Price: International Sales $80.95 US List
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Overview

A primer that introduces the reader to the fundamentals of administrative responsibility and ethics, this text seeks to explain why ethics are important to administrators in governmental and non-profit organizations, and how these administrators can relate their own personal values to the norms of the public sector. Additionally, the text helps identify ways to link ethics and management in order to strengthen the ethical climate in a public organization.

Now available as a bundle with Ethics in City Hall: Discussion and Analysis for Public Administration.

Ethics in City Hall: Discussion and Analysis for Public Administration contains twenty-one in-depth case studies that describe and discuss actual events that presented ethical and other challenges in public management. Each case study is a true account of an event that took place in a village, town, township, or city with a population between 10,000 and 40,000 over the past 30 years. It will assist instructors and students in applying principles of ethical behavior to actual ethical challenges faced by public administrators. This useful text also includes discussion questions and analyses to test students' knowledge and critical thinking.

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ShowKey Features

Introduces readers to the fundamentals of administrative responsibility and provides comprehensive coverage of the important elements of ethics.

Features an accessible and interactive approach to maximize understanding of the subject.

Includes information on the nature of public service and the ethical expectations of public administrators, as well factors that may lead to unethical behavior.

Written from a political perspective, the book addresses questions that are highly salient to persons working in government and nonprofits.

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ShowTable of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Administrative Ethics: Ideas, Sources, and Development
Chapter 3: Refining the Sense of Duty: Responsibilities and the Issue of Agency
Chapter 4: Reinforcing and Enlarging Duty: Philosophical Bases of Ethical Behavior and the Ethics Triangle
Chapter 5: Codifying Duty and Ethical Perspectives: Codes of Ethic
Chapter 6: Undermining Duty: Challenges to the Ethical Behavior of Public Administrators
Chapter 7: Deciding How to Meet Obligations and Act Responsibly: Ethical Analysis and Problem Solving
Chapter 8: Acting on Duty in the Face of Uncertainty and Risk: Responsible Whistleblowing
Chapter 9: Elevating Ethical Behavior in the Organization
Chapter 10: Mandating Duty: External Measures to Promote Ethics
Chapter 11: Conclusion: The Duties of Public Administrators


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ShowAbout the Author(s)

James H. Svara, PhD-Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona

James H. Svara is a highly recognized scholar on leadership and political-administrative relations.   His previous books include Official Leadership in the City: Patterns of Conflict and Cooperation (Oxford University Press) and Leadership at the Apex: Political-Administrative Relations in Western Local Governments co-authored by Poul Erik Mouritzen (University of Pittsburgh Press).  He is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, an honorary member of the International City/County Management Association, and former member of the National Council of the American Society for Public Administration and chair of its Section on Intergovernmental Administration and Management (SIAM).  He is Professor in the School of Public Affairs and Director of the Center for Urban Innovation at Arizona State University.  He formerly taught and held administrative positions in departments of political science and public administration at North CarolinaState University and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. 

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ShowReviews

  • "Svara’s primer on ethics for public service is accessible to students, but firmly grounded in theory and research. Its engaging style, broad coverage, scholarly insights, and practical applications will appeal to public service managers, students, faculty, elected officials and citizens. Case studies are contemporary and intriguing.  Extremely useful analytic devices are provided for examining and resolving thorny ethical dilemmas."

    —Jonathan P. West, University of Miami

  • “Engagingly written, this usable guide to ethical decisionmaking provides a sound basis for difficult judgments.  It examines the responsibilities and duties of managers, and then offers a clear, balanced guide to understanding moral quandaries at work.  The Primeris sure be of invaluable assistance to any administrator confronting professional dilemmas.”

    —James S. Bowman, Editor, Public Integrity

  • "Well documented and full of good rubrics plus great useful appendices."

    —Kelley Crockett, University of Texas-Arlington, Department of Public Affairs

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ShowAppropriate Courses

Introduction to Public Administration and courses in Administrative Ethics  

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