Public Service Ethics
Individual and Institutional Responsibilities
- James S. Bowman - Florida State University, USA
- Jonathan P. West - University of Miami, USA
Ethics in Public Administration
Public Service Ethics: Individual and Institutional Responsibilities is superior to other ethics texts I’ve used -- I was hooked from the opening pages. Bowman and West do an admirable job of both building a coherent picture of ethical public management and providing students with a robust toolkit for making ethical decisions in a variety of settings. The authors thoroughly cover the essential topics and problems in public service ethics, and bring the theories and techniques of ethical management into sharp focus through compelling practical examples. Students are given ample opportunities to apply concepts and lessons from the text through a variety of well-developed exercises; case studies that illustrate real ethical problems confronting public managers bring the book’s material to life. With its rich substantive content, current examples, and lively writing, this text is a compelling read and a welcome new development for public service ethics.
Public Service Ethics: Individual and Institutional Responsibilities is a fabulous book. The overall coverage is terrific, especially in response to new challenges in public service. Bowman and West combine contemporary and timely research, issues, examples, and case studies; yet they also convey an awareness of the enduring ethical dilemmas at the heart of public service. The book has a nice blend of the theory and history of public service ethics, and includes practical strategies that will be very helpful to students as they build their way to an individualized approach to the challenges they face in their careers. A groundbreaking text.
Bowman and West’s Public Service Ethics: Individual and Institutional Responsibilities speaks directly to the ethical issues faced by public sector managers. The book fits amazingly well with the way I teach ethics. The authors make a compelling argument for the study of ethics and effectively integrate their ideas throughout the book. The writing is lively and engaging, and will appeal to students and working professionals because it is not pretentious and pious—as are some works on the subject of ethics. The book’s many strengths may be found in its well written exercises and study questions. This text encourages students to become reflective scholars, which fits hand-in-glove with my teaching style.
Public Service Ethics: Individual and Institutional Responsibilities is a pleasure to read, and provides appropriately balanced coverage of the topic. Bowman and West’s argument is persuasive, and the logical organization of their text clearly and effectively communicates the way public managers can use their understanding of personal ethics and societal ethics to build organizational ethics. I especially like their discussion of how “macro,” “meso,” and “micro” levels of ethical analysis relate to each other. Readers will find the book’s analytic approach both engaging and illuminating.
Public Service Ethics: Individual and Institutional Responsibilities will serve as a great resource for my students. Bowman and West’s approach to ethics is well developed and balanced, and evokes both reflection and analysis. The text is particularly strong on presenting empirical evidence of ethics practices and how effective or ineffective they are; and for buttressing pro and con positions on ethical issues. Discussions of moral development theory, corruption, and the ethics of elected and appointed officials -- topics that are usually not well developed in other ethics texts -- are especially valuable. The authors also offer many useful analytic tools and methods for engaging in ethical analysis, with numerous real-world examples and cases that effectively illustrate the key points in each chapter.
This book represents a considerable accomplishment in a field where there??? are inevitably many loose ends and where new ethical problems increasingly confront public of??ficials. It provides a coherent and integrated relationship between theory and practice, a framework for analysis, and illustrations of the way in which analytical tools may be employed to deal with ethical dilemmas. It makes a signi????ficant new contribution to the study of administrative ethics.???
The text does a pretty good job of covering ethics theory without getting bogged down in state/local/federal minutiae of laws and statutes. Instructors contemplating using this text may want to consider some supplemental material to go along with the text, especially if used at a graduate level.
