International public administrations: a critique

Abstract

Recent decades have seen an expansion and proliferation of administrative bodies at the international level. An emerging literature on ‘international public administrations’ attempts to conceptualize and theorize these bodies, by applying a public administration perspective to international organizations. This essay critically examines how this literature addresses key issues relating to international administrative bodies: bureaucratic autonomy, administrative behavior and policy-making influence. It argues that existing theorizing suffers from two important weaknesses: concepts are poorly developed and not firmly rooted in public administration scholarship, and the literature pays insufficient attention to international administrations’ relationship with politics. The essay proposes an alternative theoretical framework for understanding international public administrations, centered on the notion of ‘public service bargains’. Drawing on this perspective, the essay indicates promising avenues for research on international administrations focusing on expertise, bureaucratic representation and multi-level public service bargains.