ABSTRACT
This chapter assesses where the study of comparative public administration stands as a component of the study of both political science and public administration. It provides suggestions about where the study of comparative public administration ought to go in order to become a more vital component of those two scholarly fields. In making a plea for effective comparison and more explicit theory construction, the chapter emphasizes that comparison need not simply be across geographical entities. As bureaucrats attempt to define their roles, they necessarily develop perceptions about the proper relationships between them and their nominal political masters. The utilization of an implementation approach as the guide for policy design may tend to undermine the rest of the policy process and to place the goals of getting something done ahead of the more appropriate goals of getting the right thing (be it in terms of goals or means of attaining goals) done.
