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Article: Belgian civil servants in the European Union: A tale of two cultures.
- Article from:
- West European Politics
- Article date:
- July 1, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Frank Cass & Company Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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COMMUNICATION NETWORKS: VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL.
In 1981 Aberbach, Putnam, and Rockman published their seminal comparative study about the political culture of senior bureaucrats and politicians in several Western democracies. (1) One of their main conclusions was that governmental civil services can be classified using ideal-types ranging from very vertical (type I) to mostly horizontal (type IV).
Their political and administrative superiors subject type 1 civil servants to strong hierarchical control. They interact almost exclusively with their colleagues within their own service and ministry. Their communication networks are therefore typically ...