Aaron Wildavsky Essay ⋆ Political Science Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

Aaron Wildavsky (1930–1993) was an American political scientist who spent the majority of his career teaching at the University of California at Berkley. The son of Jewish immigrants, he attended public schools in Brooklyn, New York, through his childhood. After his graduation from Brooklyn College, where he became interested in politics, Wildavsky joined the military to serve in the Korean War (1950–1953). After the war, he attended Yale University and attained his doctorate. He began his teaching life at Oberlin College and at the age of sixty-two joined Berkeley as a professor there until his death in 1993.

In addition to teaching, Wildavsky also had a deep appreciation for writing. He wrote or cowrote at least forty books, 204 articles and book chapters, seventeen newspaper articles, and numerous other essays and reports. Other accomplishments include serving as chair of Berkley’s Department of Political Science, founding its Graduate School of Public Policy, and serving as president of the American Political Science Association. Wildavsky also won several awards in his field, among them the Charles E. Merriam Award, the Paul F. Lazarsfeld Award, and the Harold Lasswell Award.

Having written or cowritten nine books and forty articles on the topic of fiscal policy and budgeting, including The Politics of the Budgetary Process (1964), Wildavsky is considered one of the biggest contributors to the subject. In Politics, he writes about the basics of budgeting and explains power politics and budgetary culture. He teaches readers how to cooperate to reach a budget that spreads its good and bad aspects fairly to every group involved in the negotiation. He also shows the reasoning behind different moves made by various players in a budgetary negotiation and theorizes that procedural reform could help the process to create better policy.

Another area of study in which Wildavsky broke new ground was policy implementation. In his 1973 book Implementation: How Great Expectations in Washington are Dashed in Oakland: or, Why It’s Amazing that Federal Programs Work at All, he writes about the large difference between the hopes and expectations of public policy in Washington, DC, and the actual results in the area where the policy took effect. He focuses on a case in which the federal government had budgeted more than $20 million dollars in Oakland, California, to increase the social calm and create a more stable community. Wildavsky finds that only 10 percent of the $20 million was actually spent. His diagnosis of the problem is that too many government officials had to give the “okay” before any program was implemented. He refers to this as “multiple clearance problems.” By avoiding the politics of program creation and focusing on results, Wildavsky improved the study of policy implementation.

Bibliography:

Chickering, A. Lawrence. “Aaron Wildavsky, R I P—Tribute to the Late Conservative Author, Policy Analyst, and Professor—Editorial,” National Review, (1993), http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/ is_n19_v45/ai_14667419.
Jones, L. R. “Aaron Wildavsky: A Man and Scholar of All Seasons.” Public Administration Review 55 (February 1995): 3–16.
Pressman, Jeffrey L., and Aaron Wildavsky. Implementation: How Great Expectations in Washington Are Dashed in Oakland: or, Why It’s Amazing That Federal Programs Work at All. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1973.
Scarlett, Lynn. “In Memoriam: Aaron Wildavsky (Obituary),” Encyclopedia. com, (1993), www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1–14780331.html.
Wildavsky, Aaron B. “Regulation of Carcinogens: Are Animal Tests a Sound Foundation?” The Independent Review 1 (Spring 1996): 29–54.

This example Aaron Wildavsky Essay is published for educational and informational purposes only. If you need a custom essay or research paper on this topic please use our writing services. EssayEmpire.com offers reliable custom essay writing services that can help you to receive high grades and impress your professors with the quality of each essay or research paper you hand in.