Federal Agencies in the Context of Transition

A Contrast between Democratic and Organizational Theories

Bibliographic Data

ID6358765
AuthorsGregory H Gaertner, Karen N Gaertner, Irene Devine
Year1983
Volume43
Issue5
Pages421-421
Publication date1983-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenuePublic Administration Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0033-3352 • E-ISSN: 1540-6210
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.2307/975849
OpenAlexW2317368920
LanguageEN
Citations received11
References cited2

Transition in the presidency, especially when a change in parties is involved, is arguably the distinctive feature of representative government. Much of the available literature points out the political, personal, and executive-level implications of presidential transition,2 but less attention has been directed to the organizational implications of this change. Moreover, most literature on transition, as indicated even by the use of the term, tends to focus on the short-term character of the process. In this paper, using data from case studies of agencies collected before and after the 1980 election, the focus is on the organizational effects of presidential transition. Rather than being a transient period of adjustment, presidential transitions represent a contrast and contradiction between democratic and organization theory. The requirements of organizations for relative internal stability and consensus are ill-suited to the jarring discontinuity of change in political leadership, and this mismatch is not trivial, brief, or transient in its effects

Context (archaeology · Contrast (vision · Democracy · Political science · Politics · Transition (genetics · Chemistry · Computer Science · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · History · Law · Political Influence and Corporate Strategies · Public Administration · Public Policy and Administration Research

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