About the relation between Politics and Administration In Woodrow Wilson s Approach

1. In Iran we consdider aministration (which sometimes called managemnet ) as a completely distinct field from Politics. Academcially, we think Administration is a neutrial, universal, scientific study about efficiency, facility and effectivenes of a system (such as government, organisations, social institutes, etc) whereas politics deals with variety of societies, histories, cultures depending on differnent human conditions and purposes; So it seems that there isn t any relations between them. 2. In practice, Statesman in Iran usually talk about administraion, adopting policies and expert methodes to maintain soveregnity, and seeking technical solutions; while politics is a subject belongs to history, unrefined people or limited periods of presidental elections. Statemans in Iran pretend to be a real politician in election periods and after being choosen by public and sitting on governmental chairs, return to status quo administrative position. So practically there isn t any relation between polictics and aministration too.3. But in 1887 when administration study was going to be imported to USA for the first time, it seems to be a selection between politics and aministration. United States after its revolution and establishing its feredal-democratic constititution was extremely a political society admiring its politics, Law and constitution more than anything. However administration in 19th century was an achivement for monarshy despotic regimes, ruling their lands with dominate, widespread bureaucrasy like Prussia kingdom. Liberal political traditions like Britain and USA prefer to emphisise on controlling and redistributing power instead of concentrating authority in head of state. In this situation, Woodrow Wilson represent his idea about how to adopt and adapt administration from Prussia simultaniously to American honorable political regime.4. In the article by title of Study of Administration (Which I tranlated a summurized version foe Mohaajer) Wilson presents his approach in 3 main concepts:a. Politics and Administration should study as two distinct and completely separate subject-matters.b. The relation between administration and politics is like the relation between body and soul. A free man and a slave need a healthy, strong body to do their jobs, though the first do it by its own will and the second doesn t have any option. So administration is just a mean in hands of politician to be conducted to his ends.c. Safe adopting the foregin administration depends on seperating the administrative system from its political platform, like learning to sharp a knife without gaining the reasons and motivations of the slayer.d. Adopting isn t complete, without adapting. Administration should be adjusted to American politics. Officials in a despotic regime only answers to the master but in a democratic regime public is the master of officials and it should be conducted by the public will.5. I think wilson s approach couldn t open an appropriate way to explain the realtion between administration and politics. Firstly the Wilson s structure devides society to three classe: - The politicians (who are the free mans making deciesons) - The officials (who are just the aimless instruments of the chiefs) - The mass (who are being manipulated always by government) And obviously in this stucture the public politic is going to be fade gradually. Seconfly Wilsons recommendation didn’t tell us anything about the effect of goals in shaping the means. It means that every instrument is part of a larger life-world and it cannot being cutted and transformed from a historical- political platform to another. Considering the social institiutes superfically as a device, prevent us to understand the fundamental concepts and meaning hidden below each part of human life. In one word, considering the world just as arbitrary technics makes us alien to real human condition.