Question

Identify the seven environmental factors by John M. Gaus (1947) and explain how these factors influence public administration in general? Provide practical examples to support your points.

Answer 1

Let me identify the seven environmental factors by John M. Gaus (1947) and these environmental factors are explained below with practical examples:

People:

People can influence public administration in general, people are considered as important stakeholder. People drive changes in the public administration, any decision making goes with democratic approach, Government could consider several set of alternative actions and select the best possible actions that is accepted by people.

For example: Public sector or administration will keep more focus on gaining of people and bring more benefits to the public or people. Public administration usually keep their work on basic needs like water, road construction, education and facilities development.

Place:

Places also can influence public administration, here, people usually move to such places that bring more income and other benefits for them.

For example: Urban places could bring more administrative changes, here, we could see more improvement in water, land, electricity.

Physical technology:

Psychical technology can also influence public administration in general. There are several improvements of computers, information technology. There are many others physical technologies that bring new approach to the public administration and public services.

For example:

Use of computer has speed up many works in the public administration; such practice also demanded needs for training to develop skills in the people.

Social Technology:

Development in society is driven by social arrangements and technologies, Government or Public sector focuses on adopting more complex societal structure. Such adoption has become possible due to technological changes and improvements.

For example:

Societal improvements like road extensions, electricity extensions and water arrangements have become possible due to technological changes and with the use of various modern machineries; many societal works can be completed within limited time.

Wishes and Ideas:

Wishes and ideas can take strong role in influences public services and administration, every individual has their own thinking, their own ideas, further with the help of individual brainstorming, we could bring improvement in public administration.

For example:

Participation of people, they can put their own ideas, various ideas can be later sorted out by using voting practices. Here, wishes and ideas could bring strong change in the public system.

Catastrophe:

There could be political Catastrophe or natural Catastrophe; all such catastrophe could influence public services, administration. There could be evidence of abuse of power and mismanagement, all that happens due to Catastrophe.

For example:

Governmental strength could be impacted due to having catastrophe situations like Earth quake, flood, heavy raining, etc. all such kind of catastrophe fall under natural catastrophe.

Personality:

People shape the public administration, public services, here, personality of people considered one of the important environmental factors. People with their personality, their honesty, integrity could bring positive change in public administration.

For example:

Any works are personality driven, with having good personality, rest of the people gets motivated and with team work, integrity and honesty, they could put maximum efforts at their public service works.