In 1980, Dr. Michael Lipsky released an award-winning book on the concept of street-level bureaucracy. According to his biography on the Georgetown University, Dr. is a Research Professor at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. He received his Ph.D. in politics from Princeton University and has taught a number of institutions including University of Wisconsin and Harvard University. Along with teaching, Dr. Lipsky has worked with the Ford Foundation and is a Senior Program Director at Demos. While receiving awards for is book “Street-Level Bureaucracy: Dilemmas of the Individual in Public Service” (1980), he has also written “Protest in City Politics” (1970) and “Nonprofits for Hire: The Welfare State in the Age of Contracting” (1993, with
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Lipsky also wrote “Street-Level Bureaucracy: The Critical Role of Street-Level Bureaucrats”. In his article, Dr. Lipsky discusses the important roles and services that ‘Street-level bureaucrats’ provide. He defines street-level bureaucrats as “public service workers who interact directly with the citizens in the course of their jobs, and who have substantial discretion in the execution of their work”. The examples he gives are teachers, police, social workers, health care providers, etc. One of the key points discussed by Dr. Lipsky the conflict of the scope and substance that these positions provide. They have the possibility of largely influencing the public and their opinion of the government as well as the government itself due to the large amount of individuals that work in these areas. This leads to another key point and controversy of street-level bureaucracy and the public due to the daily interaction and nature of the positions, the public expects more from the individuals and often these expectations are not met. Dr. Lipsky argues that due to the increase of demand, the broad scope, and high expectations, the public find the street-level bureaucrat easy targets for blame. Which in hard times is found …show more content…
The Cold War is in full swing between the US and USSR. In the early part of the 70’s, the United States was in the middle of the Vietnam War with low support from the people. Four college students were killed and nine other injured by the National Guard during a protest in Ohio. The Democrats National Committee headquarters is broken into which later turns into the Watergate Scandal. A mild recession occurred from 73 to 74 and the United States had an energy crisis in reaction to the banning of oil from the Middle East due to the attack on Israel by the Arab nations. By 1974, the US withdraws from Vietnam and President Nixon resigns from office to avoid impeachment, marking the first president in US history to resign. In 1977, blackout in New York City cause civil unrest. In ’79, Three Mile Island nuclear power station in Pennsylvania had a partial melt down and the Iranian revolution occurs with the overthrowing of the US supported leader and a raid on an US embassy in Tehran resulting in sixty-three American hostages. By the time Dr. Lipsky released his book and article in 1980, the United States had endured a lot of ups and, mostly, downs. War, scandals, and economic troubles cause a riffs and controversy across the country. Lipsky’s article is influence by these events due to the difficulty and hardship the US endured in the 70’s and the public mistrust in the government as a
Lipsky also wrote “Street-Level Bureaucracy: The Critical Role of Street-Level Bureaucrats”. In his article, Dr. Lipsky discusses the important roles and services that ‘Street-level bureaucrats’ provide. He defines street-level bureaucrats as “public service workers who interact directly with the citizens in the course of their jobs, and who have substantial discretion in the execution of their work”. The examples he gives are teachers, police, social workers, health care providers, etc. One of the key points discussed by Dr. Lipsky the conflict of the scope and substance that these positions provide. They have the possibility of largely influencing the public and their opinion of the government as well as the government itself due to the large amount of individuals that work in these areas. This leads to another key point and controversy of street-level bureaucracy and the public due to the daily interaction and nature of the positions, the public expects more from the individuals and often these expectations are not met. Dr. Lipsky argues that due to the increase of demand, the broad scope, and high expectations, the public find the street-level bureaucrat easy targets for blame. Which in hard times is found …show more content…
The Cold War is in full swing between the US and USSR. In the early part of the 70’s, the United States was in the middle of the Vietnam War with low support from the people. Four college students were killed and nine other injured by the National Guard during a protest in Ohio. The Democrats National Committee headquarters is broken into which later turns into the Watergate Scandal. A mild recession occurred from 73 to 74 and the United States had an energy crisis in reaction to the banning of oil from the Middle East due to the attack on Israel by the Arab nations. By 1974, the US withdraws from Vietnam and President Nixon resigns from office to avoid impeachment, marking the first president in US history to resign. In 1977, blackout in New York City cause civil unrest. In ’79, Three Mile Island nuclear power station in Pennsylvania had a partial melt down and the Iranian revolution occurs with the overthrowing of the US supported leader and a raid on an US embassy in Tehran resulting in sixty-three American hostages. By the time Dr. Lipsky released his book and article in 1980, the United States had endured a lot of ups and, mostly, downs. War, scandals, and economic troubles cause a riffs and controversy across the country. Lipsky’s article is influence by these events due to the difficulty and hardship the US endured in the 70’s and the public mistrust in the government as a