Perceptions of the Vietnamese Public Administration System.

Interviews with top-level Vietnamese civil servants revealed a pattern of disillusionment with the mandarinic philosophy permeating much of Vietnam's public administration system. Perceptions of respondents also showed their acceptance of administrative centralization of a large public sector as vital in developmental administration. However, they perceived the extreme fusion of decision-making authority in the hands of a particularistic, ascriptive ruling family as leading to considerable irrationality in administrative behavior. At the same time as a result of pressures, particularly exogenous ones favoring bureaucratization, certain outward manifestations of rationalizing the administrative system have been effected. The result was seen to be an instance of considerable formalism in which there is wide variance between formal structure and operating structure. This essay was completed prior to the November coup. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]