Crisis and organisational paralysis: The lingering problem of Korean public administration

Abstract

This essay argues that the Korean crisis is caused by the enduring problems of administrative culture, such as central control of decision-making, corruption, passive learning, moral decay, and a lack of self-governance and autonomy of administrators. The crisis has brought organisational paralysis because public administrators are not capable of responding to and coping with the crisis situation. The authors state that solutions to these problems are difficult and require strategies beyond short-term, instrumental solutions because change involves education and raising consciousness of public servants at all levels.