Public Administration: Administrative Ethics

Administrative behavior with a focus on ethical dilemmas that arise in the bureaucracy. An examination of a number of moral issues and ways to resolve them.

Synchronous on Wednesdays 6 - 7 pm with remaining asynchronous; Graduate Standing Only or Instructor Permission

Working in public service, whether for the government or a non-profit, involves a different set of responsibilities than in the private sector. Public employees are driven by a sense of mission and duty, and are always aware of the impact that their actions can have on the people or cause they serve, their organization, and the officials on whose authority they act. This duty to the public and elected officials raises important ethical concerns. Failure to take ethical considerations into effect can have disastrous effects on one’s career, on an organization or official’s mission, and on the public good. In this class, we will discuss ethical frameworks that can be used to work through thorny problems, examine the ethical rules of various associations and organizations, consider our own personal ethics and how they may relate to challenges that could arise at work, think through how to analyze ethical problems, and study incidents where public administrators failed to act ethically. By the end of this class, you will be able to: • Identify the different bases for ethical decision-making like duty, virtue, principle and consequence; • Understand and compare different organizational ethical guidelines; • Analyze our personal ethics and establish a considered and intentional ethical framework for our own careers; • Hone our ability to spot situations that call for an ethical analysis; • Analyze ethical conundrums in order to arrive at reasoned and justifiable decisions; and • Describe historical incidents of ethical lapses that may help you advocate for your own ethical outcomes as they arise in your career.

Evaluation will be based on assignments and weekly essays based on different aspects of ethical analysis.