Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Bureaucracy Responsiveness

  • Reference work entry
  • First Online:
Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance

Synonyms

Bureaucratic responsiveness; Public responsiveness

Definition

Bureaucracy responsiveness, or public responsiveness, refers to the extent that administrators can track public interests in a timely and accurate manner, providing the appropriate services accordingly.

Introduction

Most theorists agree that bureaucracy responsiveness is a multi-facet concept because bureaucrats have to attend to multiple legal concerns in the pursuit of public interest. In other words, professional administrators need to maintain a balance among competing demands. Bryer (2007) identified six variants of bureaucracy responsiveness in contemporary democracy: dictated responsiveness to elected officials, constrained responsiveness to bureaucratic rules and norms, purposive responsiveness to professional goals, entrepreneurial responsiveness to customers of government, deliberative responsiveness to the public as partners or collaborators with administrators, and negotiated responsiveness to balancing...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 3,499.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Adams GB, Bowerman PV, Dolbeare KM, Stivers C (1990) Joining purpose to practice: a democratic identity for the public service. In: Kass HD, Catron BL (eds) Images and identities in public administration. SAGE, Newbury Park, pp 219–240

    Google Scholar 

  • Alkadry MG (2003) Deliberative discourse between citizens and administrators: if citizens talk, will administrators listen? Adm Soc 35(2):184–209

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berner M (2001) Citizen participation in local government budgeting. Pop Gov 66(3):23–30

    Google Scholar 

  • Box RC (1992) The administrator as trustee of the public interest: normative ideals and daily practice. Adm Soc 24(3):323–345

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bozeman B (2007) Public values and public interest. Georgetown University Press, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Bryer TA (2007) Toward a relevant agenda for a responsive public administration. J Public Adm Res Theory 17(3):479–500

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chambers S (2003) Deliberative democracy theory. Ann Rev Polit Sci 6:307–326

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaney CK, Saltzstein GH (1998) Democratic control and bureaucratic responsiveness: the police and democratic violence. Am J Polit Sci 42(3):745–768

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denhardt J, Denhardt R (2007) The new public service: serving, not steering. M.E. Sharpe, Armonk

    Google Scholar 

  • Fossett J, Thompson FJ (2006) Administrative responsiveness to the disadvantaged: the case of children’s health insurance. J Public Adm Res Theory 16(3):369–392

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fried R (1976) Performance in American bureaucracy. Little, Brown, Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Gastil J (2000) By popular demand: revitalizing representative democracy through deliberative elections. University of California Press, Berkeley

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones BD, Greenberg SR, Kaufman C, Drew J (1977) Bureaucratic response to citizen-initiated contacts: environmental enforcement in Detroit. Am Polit Sci Rev 71:148–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Landy M (1993) Public policy and citizenship. In: Ingram H, Smith SR (eds) Public policy for democracy. Brookings Institution, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Manring NJ (1994) ADR and administrative responsiveness: challenges for public administrators. Public Adm Rev 54(2):1–18

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mladenka KR (1981) Citizen demands and urban services: the distribution of bureaucratic response in Chicago and Houston. Am J Polit Sci 25(4):693–714

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nalbandian J (1991) Professionalism in local government: transformations in the roles, responsibilities, and values of city managers. Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco

    Google Scholar 

  • Rourke FE (1969) Bureaucracy, politics, and public policy. Little Brown, Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Schumaker PD (1975) Policy responsiveness to protest-group demands. J Polit 37(2):488–521

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stivers C (1994) The listening bureaucrat: responsiveness in public administration. Public Adm Rev 54(4):364–369

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vedlitz A, Dyer JA (1984) Bureaucratic response to citizen contacts: neighborhood demands and administrative reaction in Dallas. J Polit 46(4):1207–1216

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, 63141-8698, USA

    Yuguo Liao

Authors
  1. Yuguo Liao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yuguo Liao .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, USA

    Ali Farazmand

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Liao, Y. (2018). Bureaucracy Responsiveness. In: Farazmand, A. (eds) Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-20928-9_669

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation