On June 15, Professor Bruce MacDonald, from North Carolina State University, delivered a keynote speech titled “The Rise and Role of China in Public Administration Research”. In his speech, he explained how he understood China’s contribution to public administration research, drawing from his experience as the editor-in-chief of the “Public Administration” journal.
First, Professor McDonald, in his capacity as the editor-in-chief of the journal, elaborated on the challenges faced by scholars in publishing papers and the efforts he has made to address these challenges. He mentioned that he once held a workshop with colleagues in public administration in China, which prompted him to further reflect on how to view his role as editor-in-chief, how to make decisions in journal review, and how to collaborate with the global public administration academic community.
Two comments in that workshop triggered his deep thoughts. The first was a scholar who elaborated on his feelings about submitting papers to international journals. He felt that international journals were only interested in data from the United States or Europe, but not from China. The second was a scholar who suggested that although individual editors were very interested in their research, they did not want them to emphasize China’s role in their papers, so they removed China from the title, abstract, and introduction of the article. In response, Professor McDonald proposed that as part of the international community, we should have an open attitude towards research from all over the world. This is not only to promote better governance practices but also to provide a better environment for the international academic community. The problems faced by researchers from all over the world are not the same, so we should provide equal opportunities for research from different regions around the world. Outstanding research depends on the research itself, not the source of the research. Therefore, as an editor, he hopes to give recognition to scholars from China, because research produced on this land is admirable.
Secondly, Professor McDonald elaborated on China’s historical contributions to public administration research. He proposed that public administration scholars often mention Wilson as the founder of modern public administration. However, many researchers, including him, actually do not agree with this, because he believes that China’s research and contributions to public administration have lasted for thousands of years. The earliest research on government administration and bureaucracy that researchers can see today comes from China, and some of the research can even be traced back to 5000 BC, which is even earlier than the emergence of ancient Egypt.
Professor McDonald believes that when we discuss the administrative system, we should note that China has been in a leading position in public service since the Tang Dynasty. Currently, many concepts used by global researchers are learned from China. In addition, in the development process of China’s public service, the civil service examination in the Song Dynasty also has a very important influence. This examination has even inspired the selection method of American civil servants until now. Historically, the United States has always been very interested in China’s longevity and stability. For example, members of the United States Congressional Council came to China as early as 1784 to learn from China’s experience. When American missionaries came to China in 1830, their primary task was also to learn about Chinese culture and history. Currently, China’s MPA education has developed rapidly in the past two decades, and its scale has surpassed that of the United States’ MPA education. Research from China has also increased rapidly in the past few decades, becoming one of the most important countries in public administration research. China's influence on global public administration is also increasing day by day.
Finally, Professor McDonald proposed that the work research conducted in China is very important for other regions in the world, and he hopes to continue to see important and outstanding research from China!
