Statesmen in Disguise: The Changing Role of the Administrative Class of the British Home Civil Service 1853-1966

This omission is unfortunate because cultural differences have an important bearing on the functioning of administrative systems in different climes. In the second place, the analysis presented in the book seems to be overly influenced by group theory of politics. It is not valid to argue that political or administrative decisions are the resultant ~f the conflict between various orgailized interest groups. Nor, all countries have as yet developed a structure of pressure groups as in America. Further, even if we recognize the crucial role played by the conflict between pressure groups in political decision-making, what happens to those interests which are unorganized or cannot find a protector and promoter? And, lastly, if a representative and effective macropolitical system is a necessary condition for making administrative system responsive and responsible, what happens when a country, particularly a developing country, does not have a well-stabilized democratic political system? Clearly, the American experience does not become fully relevant for such countries. In short, then, the lack of a comparative perspective robes much of the usefulness of the book under review.