Sheldon S. Steinberg and David T. Austern focus on the ethical and unethical behavior of elected and appointed government officials. The authors discuss the various types of ethical dilemmas that confront public sector managers, offer ways to analyze them, and describe management strategies designed to prevent unethical behavior. A series of ethical dilemmas which force the reader to examine his or her own ethical standards is followed by answers to the dilemmas which emphasize the importance of ethical choices. The authors also suggest ways to identify the susceptibility to corruption of a jurisdiction and present model policies, procedures, and legislation which could be effective in reducing the opportunity for unethical behavior. Steinberg and Austern begin by looking at the ethical dilemmas commonly faced by public officials and exploring the motivations for unethical practices. They then examine the costs of unethical behavior and profile three types of government practitioners: the corrupter, the functionary, and the ethicist. The remaining chapters address the use of investigation and management control to encourage ethical practices in public sector management. The authors discuss methods to ensure financial integrity, monitor ethical practices, and comply with ethical rules; emphasize the importance of investigation by management outside of law enforcement activities; and demonstrate the management controls necessary to ensure the ethical practice of government. Essential reading for public sector managers at all levels of government, this book is also an ideal supplemental text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in public administration.

As with the first edition, this practical book is dedicated to building organizations of integrity. It has been written for students contemplating careers in public service, elected and appointed officials, administrators, and career public servants in America and abroad.

Ethics and accountability have become important themes for modern government, as in most of the countries there is a severe crisis of legitimacy. Increasingly there is a feeling that performance management alone will not solve this crisis. Citizens also expect from politicians and public servants ethical responsible conduct. As to the ethics, however, there is a problem. Governance and new public management have raised new problems which cannot be solved by referring to the traditional bureaucratic ethics. Devolution and decentralisation processes have enhanced the responsibility of public servants. The increase of transparency and openness and the service orientation of public organisations have challenged the traditional values of discretion and equality before the rule. The growing interaction between the public and the private sector have raised the question of integrity. In light of these developments, it is important to update the ethical system, or reversibly, the traditional values of the public service can question some actual evolutions in government.

Designed to help midlevel and senior managers in organizations dedicated to public purposes, this book provides trained self-awareness to deploy values to guide decisions and build the culture of their organizations. The book explores how all managing involves leading and identifies the levels of ethical responsibility for managerial leaders. Highlighting the fundamental role that ethics plays in organizational life, J. Patrick Dobel uses insights from cognitive and social psychology to discuss how to anticipate and address threats to integrity and value informed decision making. Building on traditional ethical theory and modern research, the book begins with the fundamental assumption that individuals possess responsibility when they act for ethical purposes and results in taking a position within a public or nonprofit organization. This assumption of responsibility recognizes the inherent discretion in all positions and claims that effective ethical management requires self-awareness, self-mastery, integrity and a working frame of one’s values and character. The book pays special attention to the challenges of integrating diverse people and perspectives in public organizations as well as attending to the slippages to integrity in organizational life and how managers and leaders can foresee and address ethical slippage and corruption. The book provides checklists and decision frameworks that individuals can adopt and deploy to guide decisions. Public Leadership Ethics: A Management Approach will help create strong value informed cultures supported by communication, transparency, incentives and strong management cadres to achieve high quality service and integrity based actions. It will be of special interest to managerial leaders in public service and teaching in public administration and policy programs or executive training.

The "New" Ethics

This thoroughly revised and updated third edition of The Ethics Challenge in Public Service is the classic ethics text used in public management programs nationwide. It also serves as a valuable tool for public managers who work in a world that presents more ethical challenges every day. It contains a wealth of practical tools and strategies that public managers can use when making ethical choices in the ambiguous pressured world of public service. The book contains new material on topics including social networking, the use of apology, ethics as applied to public policy, working with elected officials, and more.

Sets the agenda for a decade's worth of research in the theory and practice of ethics in the public sector. This volume represents research on administrative ethics and features contributions by many of the leading figures in the field, and addresses both the managerial and individual/moral dimensions of ethical behavior.