Study On Civil Service System Reform In Contemporary Western Countries And Its Reference To China

Since 1980s, tremendous changes have taken place in the western countries and even in the whole world. Intensified economic globalization has resulted in the more intense international competition. Science and technology revolution characterized by information technology is in rapid development. Besides democratization tide is thriving in every country in the world. Confronting the prevailing trend of globalization, the surging tide of information revolution and the arrival of market economy times, both government administration and its civil service system are in severe challenge. In order to survive this challenge, a large number of western countries have been engaged in administrative reforms and civil service system reforms. Their pioneering attempts and dedicated efforts have witnessed great achievements in reform's models, channels and measures.China's current civil service system is facing new challenges against the common international context like western countries. Domestic conditions also urge the authority to improve China's civil service system, with the furthering reform of the political and economic systems, and owing to the defects of the system itself. This thesis attempts to offer some feasible advice for the establishment of a civil service system with Chinese characteristics, by way of benefiting from drawing upon the basic measures of civil service system reforms in western countries but holding the stance of China's national conditions. This thesis consists of five chapters.Chapter one focuses on the theoretical exploration of the research subject. It first interprets and analyzes many definitions concerning civil service system, whereupon it examines the characteristics and values indicated in the traditional civil service systems. Finally it runs back over the historical development of civil service system, which demonstrates that this system is in a continuously changing and evolutionary process with different times and different environments.Chapter two gives a detailed analysis of the causes for civil service system reforms. The external causes is constituted of the challenges of economic globalization, the impact of information and technology revolution, the impulse of democratization tide and the exemplary effects of some private departments through their reforming achievements. The internal causes lies in the discrepancy between the basic characteristics and principles of the traditional civil service system and the new times.Chapter three analyzes and evaluates the common measures shared by contemporary western countries in dealing with their civil service system reforms. The models, schedules, methods and contents they have employed are varying from one country to another, however some measures are the same: they have all introduced the idea of New Public Management; they have more concentrated on flexibility other than the rigid rules; they have changed civil servants tenure into the civil servants non-professional; they have paid little attention to political neutrality principle; they have introduced performance measurement and promote merits salary system and performance rewards system; they have conducted power-division reform and reduced the staff.Chapter four copes with the classic cases on civil service system reforms in contemporary western countries. The current reforms are generally divided into three categories: extreme reform as represented by Great Britain, gradual reform as represented by the United States of America and regulating reform as represented by France.Chapter five centers on how to establish an effective civil service system with Chinese characteristics after studying the common measures employed by modernwestern countries in reforming their civil service systems. It points out the causes for China's civil service system reform, including the challenges of international context, the need for the improvement of domestic market economy system, the deepening reform of political system and administrative system, the necessity for following the international p...