xPhilosophy, Purpose, Elements, Principles and Scope of

Administration
Introduction/ Meaning:

The word “Administer derived from the Latin word – “ad + ministraire” means care
for’ or look after people to manage affairs. Administer means ‘serve’ the meaning is
suggestive enough, as it insists on the administrator to regard himself/herself as servant, not that
the master to look after, perform all functions.

DEFINITION:

Administration:

“Administration is the organization & direction of human & material resources to

achieve desired ends.” -Pfiffner & Presthus.

“Administration is the direction, coordination control of many persons to achieve

some purposes or objectives.” - L.D. White

“Administration has to do with getting things done; with the accomplishment of defined
objectives.” - Luther Gullick

“Administration is the activities of groups cooperating to accomplish common goals.”

- Herbert A Simon

“Nursing Administration is primarily the process and agency used to establish the nursing
objectives or purposes, which an undertaking or staffs are to achieve. It also has to plan and to
stabilize, the broad lines or principles that will govern nursing action. These broad lines are
usually called policies. Whereas the nursing management is the process and agency through
which execution of nursing policy is planned and supervised.”
- Milward GE

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PHILOSOPHY OF ADMINISTRATION
 Cost effectiveness

 Execution and control of work plans

 Delegation of Responsibility and authority

 Human relations and Good Morale

 Effective communication

 Flexibility in certain situations.

Marshall E Dimock is so much impressed with the need for that he confidently asserts
that administration is now so vast an area than a philosophy of administration comes close to
being a philosophy of life. He points out the following tests of what a viable philosophy needs to
do and accomplish:
1. It must bring into sharp focus, all elements entering into administrative action should,
be integrated and brought into a system of proper and unified relationship.
2. Where possible principles are developed, it should be borne I mind that they are valid
guidelines to future action under substantially similar conditions.
3. Administration is concerned with both ends and means. A skillful fusion of the two is
the test of administrative excellence.
4. A philosophy of administration should be conceived in such a way that if not
described reality and provides reliable tool to the executive, it constitutes a grand
total, which exceeds to sum of its parts.
5. A good administrative system should communicate spirit and rounded feelings of
widespread satisfaction.

PURPOSES OF ADMINISTRATION
 It is a life blood of organization.

 It is a shoulder of an organization.

 Its main function is to achieve the objectives.

 It is like 2+2 getting five.

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  Without good administration is a house built on sand or castle in the air.

 There is no substitute of good administration.

ELEMENTS OF ADMINISTRATION:

Professor Luther Gullick (1937) summed up certain principles or elements in the word
‘POSDCORB’. ‘POSDCORB’ is of course a made-up word design to call attention to the
various functional elements of the work of a chief executive because ‘administration’ and
‘management’ have lost all specific content.

“POSDCORB”

1. Planning.

2. Organizing.

3. Staffing.

4. Directing.

5. Co-ordinating.

6. Reporting.

7. Budgeting.

PRINCIPLES OF ADMINISTRATION

According to Finer, following are the principles of administration:

1. Principle of Oneness

2. Principle of Specialism and the Whole

3. Principle of Hierarchy and Regimentation

4. Principle of Morale

5. Principle of Bureaucracy

6. Principle of Self Administration.

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 Since principles may be considered as widely accepted statements, which are found to be
true and reflective of life situations to sum up with 14 principles of administration were
identified by Henri Fayol as given below:

1. Division of work.
2. Authority, responsibility & accountability.
3. Discipline.
4. Unity of command.
5. Unity of direction.
6. Subordination of individual interest to organizational interest.
7. Remuneration of personnel
8. Centralization.
9. Scalar chain of command.
10. Order.
11. Equity.
12. Stability of tenure of personnel.
13. Initiative.
14. Esprit de corps.

SCOPE OF ADMINISTRATION
The scope of administration is very wide. It is not only restricted to public administration that
deals with three functionaries, i.e. legislative, executive and judiciary. As administration is
universal in nature, its scope is wide. It covers all the areas like school, hospital, business etc., all
the managerial activities and functional areas of management and administration like personnel,
financial, material and production are covered.
 Political function

 Legislative function

 Financial function

 Defensive function

 Educational function

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  Social administration

 Economic administration

 Foreign administration

 Imperial administration

 Local administration

Since, administration permeates all planned human activities; hence it is a center of all
human affairs. Its principle aspects are formulation of policy and its implementation for the
attainment in an optimum manner of stated ends in the shape of service or products.
Administration is an activity which demands correct analysis and accurate orientation.

Summary:

Today I have completed about Administration, its meaning, definition, philosophy,

purpose, elements, principles and scope.

Conclusion:

On the whole we can say that administration is nothing but the organization & direction
of human & material resources to achieve desired goal. Activities of groups’ cooperation are
required to accomplish goals.

Bibliography:

1. B.T Basvanthappa, “NURSING ADMINISTRATION”,1st Edition 2014, Jaypee Brother

Medical Publisher Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India.
2. B.T Basvanthappa, “NURSING ADMINISTRATION”,3rd Edition 2014, Jaypee Brother
Medical Publisher Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India.
3. D. Elakkuvana Bhaskara Raj,” MANAGEMENT OF NURSING SERVICES AND
EDUCATION”, 3RD edition, 2016, Emmess medical Publishers, Mahalkshmipuram,
Bangalore, India.

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 4. Deepak.K, “A COMPREHENSIVE TEXT BOOK ON NURSING MANAGEMENT “,
2ND Edition, 2015, Emmess medical Publishers, Mahalkshmipuram, Bangalore, India.
5. I.Clement, “MANAGEMENT OF NURSING SERVICES AND EDUCATION” , 2ND
edition 2016, Elsevier Reed elsevier India Pvt.Ltd. New delhi, India.
6. Joginder Vati,“PRINCIPLE & PRACTICE OF NURSING MANAGEMENT &
ADMINISTRATION FOR BS.c. & M.Sc. NURSING”,1 ST edition 2013,Jaypee Brother
Medical Publisher Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India.
7. TNAI, “NURSING ADMINISTARTION AND MANAGEMENT” ,1ST edition 2007,
The trained nurses association of India, New delhi, India.

Websites:

https://www.slideshare.net/BRARHARMEET/seminar-on-introduction-of-administration

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/administration

http://www.yourdictionary.com/administration

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administration