PhD project of Jana Walter MPA

Functional politicization as informal institution in the ministerial bureaucracy: The social function of collective informality 

Whenever the politics-administration-dichotomy seems to be dissolving, questions of politicization arise. So far, scientific interest has been focusing either on those forms of politicization that are related to personnel recruitment or on functional politicization, if it describes the extent to which top bureaucrats incorporate political considerations into decision-making without an explicit instruction given by a political leader. However, the study of functional politicization among lower-ranking civil servants seems particularly interesting as the incorporation of political sensitivity within the ministerial bureaucracy is described as something that permeates the entire organization. The internalization of a political mindset and responsiveness even appear to be fundamental requirements for any administrative position in ministerial bureaucracy.

Due to the invisibility of institutionalized activities and structures, functional politicization appears as an informal institution. There is a scientific consensus that decisions made in the process of informalization may turn into extraordinary “political” decisions due to presumed environmental reactions. The results are the indifference of individual priorities and leadership styles of political actors to the strictly formalized bureaucratic organization, the power of informality in terms of increasing flexibility and a willingness to cooperate, but also a risk to reputation, promotion and mental well-being of strictly law-abiding officials in the case of remonstration. However, it remains unknown how functional politicization, understood as an informal institution, is perceived by ministerial bureaucrats outside of higher-ranking positions.

With the aid of an explorative qualitative research design, the project aims to paint a holistic picture of functional politicization in the area of the lower-ranking civil service. While institutional approaches form the dissertation’s theoretical framework, the empirical part is based on an interview study.

If you are interested in the dissertation project, you may ask or send comments to: Jana.Walter[at]student.uni-kassel.de

Supervisor

Prof. Dr. Sylvia Veit

Duration

September 2019 to May 2022