Transparent, trustworthy, and accountable ethics are the foundation for effective public administration (D’Aleo, 2018). In this article, we explore the reasons behind such ethical challenges in public administration and propose ways of dealing with them. With this comes a real peril of disrespect for ethics, which may cause an erosion of public trust in executive forces. The purpose of this article is to explain why it is complex and suggest the appropriate means to improve public ethics based on critical thinking and involvement. To conclude, this analysis underscores that practitioners must always stick to such ethics as openness, responsibility, and credibility while reviewing common problems associated with such matters, related implications, and possible solutions.
Ethical Issues in Public Administration
The ethical framework in public administration encompasses plenty of practical details and theoretical deliberations. According to Charbonneau et al. (2020), organization theory is vital in dealing with ethical issues, notably within the complex authority relationships of an administrative organization.
Analyze how public institutions purchase. Global communities are grappling with ethical challenges in contract approvals to officers involved (Boada & Maestre, 2020). Disputes about government contracts from various jurisdictions demonstrate the complexity and potential implications, whereby policymakers might work hand in hand with private companies and cause corruption and biased procurements (Georgescu & Pintea, 2018).
Likewise, a report produced by Bowman and West (2021) explains how some states in the US need help understanding and adhering to their oaths of office. Real-life examples will prove these challenges. Prominent cases can pose ethical dilemmas where there is a conflict between the interests of a public official and more general responsibilities to protect public interests or enforce the law. Such a situation could lead to a loss of belief and transparency.
These reflect the prevalence of ethical problems surrounding conflicting interests in public service and all its layers. The second one is ethical concerns posed by the innovations. Using artificial intelligence-based algorithms for decision-making creates moral issues since these algorithms may mirror societal disparities, thus perpetuating biases and raising the question of how such decisions would be considered justifiable or fair.
Ethical concerns in public administration create a need for solid ethical frameworks. A comprehensive approach can be cultivated by incorporating principles of deontological, utilitarian, and virtue ethics. Strategies encompass the implementation of ethical training programs, the establishment of role-specific standards of behaviour, and the promotion of openness. Although facing obstacles such as opposition and consistent compliance, these frameworks can enhance public confidence, organizational standing, legitimacy, and credibility (D’Aleo, 2018). Ensuring an ethical culture is essential for preserving societal trust, accountability, transparency, and public confidence.
Factors Contributing to Ethical Issues
According to Georgescu and Pintea (2018), ethics forms the basis of a solid ethical framework for administrative acts. On top of that, it fits when ethical fallbacks have happened, thanks to the absence of stated standards. Also, take examples of people operating on the divide between private and public life. Conflicts of interest can result in decisions that influence decision-making, thus undermining the general welfare unless severe standards of ethics are applied.
Thus, this line of Onyango’s (2020) analysis underscores that trust within collaborative institutional/network partnerships must exist when fighting public administration corruption. Consider also cases of disrupted lines of communication between administrators’ offices and oversight bodies, which make monitoring more difficult. These trust and cooperation gaps may deter investigations on ethical indiscretions, and malpractice may be unpunished.
These perspectives are furthered in the research conducted by Boada and Maestre (2020), highlighting the importance of strict ethics within public bodies. Decreased unethical matters have been noticed in instances involving solid ethics in the various government bodies. An example of this is that institutions should have a comprehensive ethics framework for their institutions to be transparent, accountable, and less corrupt than others that did not follow the set ethical principles.
The culture of administrative entities greatly influences the ethical behaviour of individuals. A study on organizational structure and corporate culture revealed that moral failure often arises from this social arrangement where rapidity prevails over ethical behaviour (Georgescu & Pintea, 2018). The effect of corporate culture on ethics is evident in cases where bureaucratic red tape prevents transparency and accountability within administrative processes.
Civil servants can encounter other ethical challenges, including the shortage of specific degree courses to explain the necessity for public decision-making on moral grounds (Van Steden, 2020). Failure to understand basic moral concepts can result in administrative staff unintentionally breaching ethical norms or enforcing them insensitively. These situations could render the business unable to conduct its operations typically.
Introducing technology in administration results in ethical issues stemming from rapid innovation. Sources of moral uncertainty include data breaches, algorithmic biases, and the application of morality in decision-making with AI (Bowman & West, 2021). Ethical standards in governance structures face severe problems because no clear ethical principles are related to developing technology. Also, consider dealing with large amounts of personal data in government-related enterprises. Ethics are needed to control government technology growth due to data privacy breaches and misuse of private information.
Finally, ineffective oversight or rules can exacerbate unethical conduct in public management (Georgescu & Pintea, 2018). In most instances, misbehaviour has to be taken on or appropriately treated because of the loopholes within tracking systems and governance mechanisms.
Consequences of Ethical Lapses
However, unethical behaviour by civil servants can have a far-ranging effect on the state and social life. To mitigate these impacts, Pareto and Román (2020) advocate that city councils institute codes of ethics to avert such unethical behaviours before they start. When members of these organs perform evil actions, citizens lose trust in them. When citizens see public officials or administrative firms engage in corrupt practices, they lose faith and start mistrusting their system. Trust in government may reduce its legitimacy, thus compromising good governance due to the diminished ability of the former to effect changes on the latter (Bowman & West, 2021).
Another consequence of such unscrupulousness in the civil service is that it undermines trust in procedural justice practices and the preservation of the culture of non-responsibility for actions taken. Ethical values may be abandoned in governance, leading to fairness and equity distortion, resulting in dishonest, unfair, and selective decision-making, favouritism and even nepotism (D’Aleo, 2018). Two monetary consequences of unethical behaviour include mismanagement of funds and wrongful allocation of resources. Money can be lost due to improper actions such as corruption, embezzlement, and using the state’s funds for personal gain. It may also divert resources from vital public service provision and infrastructure construction (Bowman & West, 2021).
The other adverse outcome of unethical conduct includes reputational damage to public leaders and their administrations. Reputation, including scandals and other incidents emerging from evil actions, reduces believability and job capability (Boada & Maestre, 2020). Unethical behaviour also results in two social phenomena: decreased social cohesiveness and a widespread sensation of injustice. Cynicism and dissatisfaction among the masses result when people perceive administrative entities as unethical, for it underlies every society.
Ethical Frameworks and Solutions
Van Steden (2020) advocated for an approach to resolving ethical dilemmas that would follow in the footsteps of Aristotle’s ethical philosophy. He contends that academicians should draw inspiration from classic ethical approaches to fill the presently existing ethically oriented vacuum in research (p. 240).
Public Administration’s Ethical Frameworks
The ethical framework establishes what is right in public administration and how decisions must be made. These models are built upon various concepts of right and wrong. For example, deontology stipulates compliance with the rules and duties, while utilitarianism requires an act that produces desired results (Van Steden, 2020).
Virtue ethics also emphasizes the importance of developing moral virtues as a basis for ethical behaviour among public officers like Van Steden (2020); by including these ideas within organizational management structures, an all-encompassing approach to decision-making could be attained.
Suggested Approaches and Methods
The first consideration is training all public officials in comprehensive ethics programs. Such programs should elaborate on providing the ethical frameworks for understanding how ethical theories are applied (Van Steden, 2020). One may incorporate case scenarios and ethical debate to enhance ethical thinking and judgment in administrative training. Public administrators should have a clear, enforceable code of conduct and ethics (D’ Aleo, 2018). The code should entail the expected behavioural conduct, ways of reporting, and consequences for unhealthy behaviours. Honesty and ownership from other administrative entities should be encouraged (Boada & Maestre, 2020). Independent oversight, whistleblower protection guidelines, and periodic ethical assessments foster ethical behaviour and deter misconduct (Charbonneau et al., 2020).
Possible Advantages and Difficulties of Implementation:
Bureaucratic systems’ inherent aversion to change is a significant obstacle to public administration ethical framework implementation. Deliberate effort will be needed to change business cultures to focus on ethical governance and eliminate long-standing practices that put profit before ethics (Boada & Maestre, 2020).
Also, it takes work to ensure everyone follows the ethics rules. Cases of biased enforcement or inconsistent application of ethical principles can compromise the effectiveness of existing frameworks (Onyango, 2020). Nevertheless, solid ethical frameworks have numerous potential advantages. A more trustworthy public, a better reputation for the organization, and a more pleasant workplace are all results of moral leadership (Charbonneau et al., 2020). Ethical practices enhance the legitimacy and credibility of government acts by attracting and retaining qualified staff, facilitating effective decision-making, and eventually strengthening these factors (Georgescu & Pintea, 2018).
In conclusion, ethical dilemmas in public administration call for strong ethical standards. A more comprehensive view can be promoted by drawing on theories such as virtue ethics, utilitarianism, and deontological ethics. Some strategies include openness, role-specific rules of behaviour, and ethical training programs. These frameworks can potentially improve public trust, organizational reputation, legitimacy, and credibility—even in the face of obstacles like uniform obedience and opposition. Preserving public trust, accountability, and transparency requires dedication to an ethical culture.
References
Boada, J. P., & Maestre, B. R. (2020). Reforming Public Administration: The Codes of Ethics in City Councils. Ramon Llull Journal of Applied Ethics, (11), 59-85.
Bowman, J. S., & West, J. P. (2021). Oaths of office in American states: Problems and prospects. Public personnel management, 50(1), 109–132. https://doiorg.proxy1.ncu.edu/10.1177/0091026020913072
Charbonneau, É., Bromberg, D., & Henderson, A. C. (2020). Public administration and organizational theory: Prescribing the proper dose. Public Organization Review, 20(1), 63–78. https://doi-org.proxy1.ncu.edu/10.1007/s11115-018-0430-x
D’Aleo, P. (2018). Public Administration and Ethics: A Problematic Co-Habitation. Curentul Juridic, 73(2), 21-26.
GEORGESCU, Ș. D., & Pintea, I. (2018). REMARKS ON THE ETHICAL FOUNDATIONS OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION. Economics, Management & Financial Markets, 13(3).
Onyango, G. (2020). Inter-Institutional Trust and Multi-Agency Networks in Anti-Corruption Efforts in Public Administration in Kenya. African Studies Quarterly, 19(2).
Van Steden, R. (2020). Blind spots in public ethics and integrity research: What public administration scholars can learn from Aristotle. Public Integrity, 22(3), 236-244.
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