Ap Gov Chapter 13 Vocab – Flashcards

Definition: A system of organization and control based on the principles of hierarchal authority, job specialization, and formalized rules. Sentence: All large-scale, task oriented organizations-public and private- are bureaucratic in form. Bureaucracy is found wherever there is a need to manage large numbers of people and tasks.

Definition: A basic principle of bureaucracy that refers to the chain of command within an organization whereby officials and units have control over those below them Sentence: Hierarchal authority speeds action by reducing conflict over the power to make decisions: the higher an individual's position in the organization the more decision-making power he or she has.

Definition: A basic principle of bureaucracy that holds that the responsibilities of each job position should be explicitly define and That a precise division of labor with in the organization should be maintained.

Definition: A basic principle of bureaucracy that refers to the standardized procedures and established regulations by which a bureaucracy conducts its operations.

Definition: The major administrative organizations within the federal executive bureaucracy, each of which is headed by a secretary, or in the case of justice, the Atty. Gen. Sentence: each cabinet department has responsibility for a major function of the federal government such as the defense, agriculture, or justice.

Definition: Bureaucratic agencies that are similar to Cabinet departments but usually have a narrower area of responsibility.

Definition: Administrative units such as the Federal Communications Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency that have responsibility for the monitoring and regulation of ongoing economic activities. Sentence: Regulatory agencies are created when Congress recognizes the importance of close and continuous regulation of an economic activity, however beyond the executive functions they also have legislative and judicial functions. For example, they issue regulations and judge whether individuals or organizations have complied with them.

Definition: bodies, such as the US Postal Service and Amtrak that are similar to private corporations in that they charge for their services but differ in that they receive federal funding to help defray expenses. Sentence: The directors of government corporations are appointed by the president with senate approval.

Definition: organizations within the bureaucracy that are headed by commissioners appointed by the Pres. Sentence: an example of a presidential commissions is the commission on civil rights.

Definition: The primary function of the bureaucracy; it refers to the process of carrying out the authoritative decisions of Congress, the president, and the courts. Sentence: In the course of policy implementation, administrators come up with policy ideas that are then brought to the attention of the president or members of Congress.

Definition: An approached to managing the bureaucracy whereby people are appointed to important government positions as a reward for political services they have rendered and because of their partisan loyalty. Sentence: The nations first six presidents, from George Washington to John Quincy Adams, believed in the patronage system, where only distinguished men should be entrusted with the management of the national government.

Definition: The practice of granting public office to individuals in return for political favors they have rendered sentence: Andrew Jackson believed the government would be more responsive to the public if it were administered by common people of good sense, however the majority of the public called this the spoils system.

Definition: An approach to managing the bureaucracy whereby people are appointed to government positions on the basis of either competitive examinations or special qualifications, such as professional training Sentence: The Pendleton act, which established a merit system, created the Civil Service Commission to establish job classifications, administer competitive examinations, and oversee merit employees.

Definition: The administrative objective of merit-based bureaucracy. Sentence: Such a bureaucracy should be competent in the sense that employees are hired and retained on the basis of their expertise and neutral in the sense that it operates by objective standards rather than partisan ones.

Definition: An approach to managing the bureaucracy that is based on presidential leadership and presidential management tools, such as the president's annual budget proposal. Sentence: In the executive leadership system the president was to provide the general leadership that would overcome agency fragmentation and provide a common direction

Definition: The tendency of bureaucrats to place the interests of the agency ahead of other interests or ahead of the priorities sought by the president or congress. Sentence: Because of agency point of view more than 80% of all too careerists reach their high-level positions by rising through the ranks of the same agency.

Definition: Special interest groups that benefit directly from the activities of a particular bureaucratic agency and therefore are strong advocates of the agency Sentence: Clientele groups assist agencies by placing pressure on Congress and the president to support those programs in which they benefit.

Definition: The degree to which bureaucrats are held accountable for the power they exercise. Sentence: Bureaucratic accountability occurs primarily through oversight by the president, Congres, and through the courts.

Definition: An internal check on the bureaucracy whereby employees report instances of mismanagement that they observe. Sentence: To encourage whistle-blowers to come forward with their information Congress enacted the whistle blower protection act to protect against retaliation.

Definition: The idea that the bureaucracy will be more responsive to the public if its employees at all levels are demographically representative of the population as a whole. Sentence: At present, the bureaucracy is not demographically representative at its top levels because roughly 60% of managerial and professional positions are held by White males.