POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

The concept of Politics

and Administration

Politics and
Administration: Three
Schools, Three
Approaches, and Three
Suggestions
Prepared by: Kier Franco
Learning
Objectives:
Identify and understand various definitions of
politics and administration
Explore the three schools of thoughts on politics
and administration relationship
DESCRIBE POLITICS
IN ONE WORD
POLITICS

“Politics” comes from the Greek word “polis” which

means “city-state.”
Politics is who gets what, when, and how.

This conception of politics as the process through which

organizations representing diverse interests and ideals make
collective decisions has two assumptions. The first is that all
societies must have diversity, implying that people will always
have various interests and values, necessitating the existence
of a mechanism to reconcile these disparate interests and
values. The second assumption is that scarcity is an
unavoidable feature of all societies because what people
seek is insufficient; thus, a system for distributing these
things is required. (Okpanachi, et. al., 2020)
As a science, it is a systematic body of
knowledge that deals with the government
and regulation, maintenance and
development, and defense and
augmentation of the state, and protection of
human rights.
POLITICS is the realm of
public affairs or the state
Politics as limited to public affairs and
excludes private affairs.

State is expected to provide goods and

services solely for public purpose and not
for private ones.
 ETYMOLOGY RI C HMA N A N D C O P E N

From the Latin word Concerned with the

administrate. To look after implementation of plans and
or care for people, as well objectives as well as internal
as to manage affairs. operational efficiency.

LEONARD WHITE LUTHER GULICK

A process common to all Administration has to do with

group effort, public or getting things done; with the
ADMINISTRATION private, civil or military, accomplishment of defined
large scale or small scale. objectives.

JAMES L. MCCANNY PFIFFNER AND PRESTHUS

Administration is the Organization and direction of

organization and use of human and material resources to
men and materials to achieve desired ends
accomplish a purpose.
 According to integral view,
‘Administration’ is the sum total or the
whole complex of activities, manual,
clerical, technical and managerial which
are undertaken to realize the objective.

According to the managerial view,

‘Administration’ pertains to only some of
the activities concerned with management
which unite and control the rest of them
as part of co-coordinated endeavor.
POLITICS-ADMISTRATION
DICHOTOMY
The function of politics is to provide
guidance, or what Wilson said, “setting the
task for administration." The function of
public administration, on the other hand, is
to provide neutral competence to the
governance process.

The goal is to professionalized public

administration.

Separate those political officials and

employees to those civil servants

Public administrators are linked to elected

officials in a subordinate position.
Public administration is an inseparable part of
the governance process and it is neither possible
nor desirable to achieve even a partial
separation of politics from administration.

THREE REASONS

First, non-existence of all-powerful center of

authority.

Second, there is a concept known as administrative

discretion.

Third, ethics and morality issues.

The interaction school represents various efforts to find a
common ground between the political and separation schools.

Collaboration between elected and administrative officials

while maintaining each one’s traditional roles and unique
perspectives, yet allowing some overlaps.

As an alternative to the dichotomy model of the separation

school, the interaction school brings the concept of
continuum.
Thank you!