Why study government elites? Because the decisions of the great and the good affect all our lives for good or ill. We want to know what ministers, bureaucrats and managers do, why, how, and with what consequences. In other words, we are interested in their reasons, their actions and the effects of both. To understand their reasons we need a political anthropology of government elites.
Observing Government Elites studies top-level political office-holders, civil servants and public managers in different countries and the European Union. It describes their world through their eyes, focusing on beliefs and everyday practices. It analyses how such practices are embedded in political-administrative traditions; in webs of institutional rules, routines, rituals, and relations. It explores how their beliefs, practices and traditions create meaning in politics, policy making and public service delivery and it reflects critically on how to do this kind of field work; on being up close and personal. By being there and getting up close to elites in ways that social scientists hardly ever do, the authors provide unique insights into the everyday life of ministers and senior public servants.
'This volume provides a distinctive and innovative insight into...important issues based on ethnographic approaches that political scientists typically eschew. The scholarship is uniformly high, as would be expected from such a distinguished cohort of contributors. I would have no hesitation in recommending this work to all scholars with an interest in the broad field.' - Michael Cole, University of Liverpool, Political Studies Review
Being There; R.A.W.Rhodes, P.'t Hart & M.Noordegraaf
PART I: OBSERVING AT HOME
The Everyday Life of a Minister: A Confessional and Impressionist Tale; R.A.W.Rhodes
Spies at the Crossroads: Observing Change in the Dutch Intelligence Service; P.'t Hart
Men at Work: How Public Policy Managers Cope; M.Noordegraaf
Governing Karlstad: An Insider's Story; P.O.Norell
PART II: OBSERVING ABROAD
Dutch Eurocrats at Work: Getting Things in Done in Europe; K.Geuijen, P.'t Hart & K.Yesilkagit
The EU's Nomads: National Eurocrats in European Policy Making; R.Thedvall
European Integration in Anthropological Perspective: Studying the 'Culture' of the EU Civil Service; C.Shore
So What? The prospects and Pitfalls of Being There; R.A.W.Rhodes, P.'t Hart & M.Noordegraaf
R.A.W RHODES is Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Director of the Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University. He is the author or editor of twenty-five books including recently; The Oxford Handbook of Political Institutions (joint editor, 2006); and Governance Stories (with Mark Bevir, 2006). He is also editor of Public Administration; life Vice-President of the Political Studies Association of the United Kingdom, and a Fellow/Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences in both Australia and Britain.
PAUL 'T HART is Professor of Political Science, Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University and Professor of Public Administration, Utrecht School of Governance, Utrecht University, Netherlands. He is the editor and author of twenty-one books including most recently The Politics of Crisis Management: Public Leadership under Pressure (2005).
MIRKO NOORDEGRAAF is Professor of Public Management in the Utrecht School of Governance, Utrecht University, Netherlands. He specializes in public management. His books include Attention! Work and Behavior of Public Managers amidst Ambiguity (2000); and the widely used (Dutch) textbook on Management in Public Domains (2004). He published/s in Public Administration, Public Management Review, Administration & Society, International Journal of Public Sector Management, Evaluation, and Journal of Management Studies.
Description
Why study government elites? Because the decisions of the great and the good affect all our lives for good or ill. We want to know what ministers, bureaucrats and managers do, why, how, and with what consequences. In other words, we are interested in their reasons, their actions and the effects of both. To understand their reasons we need a political anthropology of government elites.
Observing Government Elites studies top-level political office-holders, civil servants and public managers in different countries and the European Union. It describes their world through their eyes, focusing on beliefs and everyday practices. It analyses how such practices are embedded in political-administrative traditions; in webs of institutional rules, routines, rituals, and relations. It explores how their beliefs, practices and traditions create meaning in politics, policy making and public service delivery and it reflects critically on how to do this kind of field work; on being up close and personal. By being there and getting up close to elites in ways that social scientists hardly ever do, the authors provide unique insights into the everyday life of ministers and senior public servants.
Reviews
'This volume provides a distinctive and innovative insight into...important issues based on ethnographic approaches that political scientists typically eschew. The scholarship is uniformly high, as would be expected from such a distinguished cohort of contributors. I would have no hesitation in recommending this work to all scholars with an interest in the broad field.' - Michael Cole, University of Liverpool, Political Studies Review
Contents
Being There; R.A.W.Rhodes, P.'t Hart & M.Noordegraaf
PART I: OBSERVING AT HOME
The Everyday Life of a Minister: A Confessional and Impressionist Tale; R.A.W.Rhodes
Spies at the Crossroads: Observing Change in the Dutch Intelligence Service; P.'t Hart
Men at Work: How Public Policy Managers Cope; M.Noordegraaf
Governing Karlstad: An Insider's Story; P.O.Norell
PART II: OBSERVING ABROAD
Dutch Eurocrats at Work: Getting Things in Done in Europe; K.Geuijen, P.'t Hart & K.Yesilkagit
The EU's Nomads: National Eurocrats in European Policy Making; R.Thedvall
European Integration in Anthropological Perspective: Studying the 'Culture' of the EU Civil Service; C.Shore
So What? The prospects and Pitfalls of Being There; R.A.W.Rhodes, P.'t Hart & M.Noordegraaf
Authors
R.A.W RHODES is Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Director of the Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University. He is the author or editor of twenty-five books including recently; The Oxford Handbook of Political Institutions (joint editor, 2006); and Governance Stories (with Mark Bevir, 2006). He is also editor of Public Administration; life Vice-President of the Political Studies Association of the United Kingdom, and a Fellow/Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences in both Australia and Britain.
PAUL 'T HART is Professor of Political Science, Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University and Professor of Public Administration, Utrecht School of Governance, Utrecht University, Netherlands. He is the editor and author of twenty-one books including most recently The Politics of Crisis Management: Public Leadership under Pressure (2005).
MIRKO NOORDEGRAAF is Professor of Public Management in the Utrecht School of Governance, Utrecht University, Netherlands. He specializes in public management. His books include Attention! Work and Behavior of Public Managers amidst Ambiguity (2000); and the widely used (Dutch) textbook on Management in Public Domains (2004). He published/s in Public Administration, Public Management Review, Administration & Society, International Journal of Public Sector Management, Evaluation, and Journal of Management Studies.
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