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ERIC Number: EJ1102417
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-0620
EISSN: N/A
Biography in the Study of Public Administration: Towards a Portrait of a Whitehall Mandarin
Ribbins, Peter; Sherratt, Brian
Journal of Educational Administration and History, v48 n3 p243-260 2016
This paper reports on part of an on-going interview-based study of the eight permanent secretaries who served at the Department for Education from 1976 to 2012. Following a discussion of the relevance of biography to the study of public sector administrators, it presents a portrait of Sir Tim Lankester. Based on his own account and that of relevant others it draws on a four-stage career model to describe his life before and during his time as a civil servant. Centering on his career as permanent secretary in three it considers, "inter alia," his working relationship with his Secretaries of State; his view of the role of permanent secretary; his policy contribution; and, his style and achievements. Following an examination of the merits of such research, the paper concludes with a brief discussion of the possible contribution of prosopography and a call for ethnographic studies of public administration.
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A