VISIONS OF CORRUPTION CONTROL AND THE EVOLUTION OF AMERICAN PUBLIC-ADMINISTRATION

What has been the impact of corruption control efforts on the development and operation of public administration? Frank Anechiarico and James B. Jacobs describe the evolution of ''anticorruption project'' over four eras since the 19th century. Each era is characterized by a particular vision of corruption control, and each vision has had a formative effect on the practice of public administration and its development as academic discipline. The impact of the anticorruption project is cumulative; each generation of reformers has added rules, procedures, and institution. Most recently, a 'panoptic'' vision of corruption-proof government has promoted corruption control to a top priority, competing successfully with other government functions for influence and resources. The very success of the contemporary anticorruption project has triggered a powerful revisionist critique that highlights the tension between corruption control and administrative efficiency and effectiveness. The panoptic vision, in some cases, has come to dominate the business of government; it has also contributed to the antibureaucratic sentiment of the current reinvention movement.