Woodrow Wilson and the Study of Administration: A New Look at an Old Essay

Abstract

Unquestionably, Woodrow Wilson's scholarly essay, “The Study of Administration,” (1887) stands as an historic landmark in American administrative thought. As Leonard D. White once wrote, “Wilson's essay introduced this country to the idea of administration.” Based upon the recent publication of the Woodrow Wilson papers by Princeton University Press, the present paper attempts to examine the origin and enduring contribution of Wilson's administrative thought. The central thesis of the paper is that Wilson's administrative theories grew out of the salient ideas of late nineteenth century America, particularly, Social Darwinism and the pressing demands for political reform. In many respects, however, Wilson's essay created more issues than it resolved since it failed to delineate clearly the substance and boundaries of the field of administration.