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美国进步主义时代专家参政现象研究,1900-1920

Academics’ Participation in Public Service as Govenrment Experts during the Progressive Era in the United States,1900-1920

【作者】 侯波

【导师】 韩铁;

【作者基本信息】 南开大学 , 世界史, 2012, 博士

【摘要】 在20世纪初的进步主义时代,美国政治中出现了一种专家参政的新现象,即一大批以大学教授为代表的专业学者离开了校园,作为专家参与到这一时期的政府事务之中。这种现象随着进步主义改革的开展而在美国变得越来越普遍和引人注目。1917年美国参加第一次世界大战后,专家参政更是形成了一个前所未有的高潮。专家参政现象之所以在进步主义时代出现,主要是由两方面的历史因素所促成。一方面,美国的高等教育在1870年前后揭开了变革的帷幕。这场被后世称为“大学革命”的高等教育变革不仅造就了一批现代研究型大学,还导致了学术的专业化和职业化,使大学教员开始真正地成为“以学术为业”的专业学者。这些大学里的专家在社会责任和服务理念的驱使下,愿意走出象牙塔外,参与公共生活,用他们的专业知识为政府服务。另一方面,内战后的美国经历了城市化和工业化的全面转型。伴随着这一进程,美国社会中出现了许多技术性难题和严峻的社会问题。进步主义改革者们意识到,这些“工业-城市”社会的新问题不是昔日“乡村共和国”时代形成的小而弱的政府可以解决的,也不是仅仅依据常识、道德和法律知识就能处理的,美国各级政府必须在扩大其规模和职能的同时转而向当时出现的大学里的专家寻求帮助,以期后者能运用其专长协助政府对公共事务进行有效的管理。这种依靠专家提高政府效率以应对工业化和城市化时代挑战的理念,使专家参政与进步主义改革几乎成了共生现象。可以说,进步主义改革在州政、市政和联邦政治层面兴起之际,也是专家参政在这些层面出现之时。在州一级进步主义改革一马当先的威斯康星州,“(大)学、(政)府”之间建立了广泛合作的关系,许多威斯康星大学的教授们都在为州政府提供其所需要的专家服务。这种专家参政的改革经验被冠以“威斯康星理念”之名而传遍美国。与此同时,在市政改革进行得如火如荼的纽约、芝加哥等大城市,当地的大学学者不仅个人作为专家参与市政管理,还成立独立的非政府性专家机构来为市政改革服务。这种独立专家机构始于纽约市,很快就在美国50多个城市有了翻版,开公共管理思想库之先河。联邦政治中的专家参政则以1901年西奥多·罗斯福入主白宫为标志,在科技、社会经济监管和外交等领域形成不可逆转之势,并在其后的塔夫脱和威尔逊两届总统任内得以继续。到第一次世界大战美国处于“总体战争”的紧急状况下,专家参政更是扩展到了与赢得战争有关的所有领域,在广度和深度上都不是和平时期可以比拟的。诚然,在1900至1920年的进步主义时期,以大学教授为代表的学术界人士积极参与公共事务,协助政府解决国家政治、经济、社会领域直至战争中的各种疑难问题,不仅帮助社会转型时期的美国政府改善了治理能力和政府效率,促进了美国现代国家的构建,而且实现了专业化学术的社会价值,提高了大学以及学者在美国社会中的地位。但是,我们也必须注意到,专家参政在具体实践中也产生了一些违背民意的消极结果。更重要的是,我们不能过高估计大学学者作为政府专家在美国政治中的实际作用和影响。说到底,那些在政府中扮演专家角色的大学学者主要承担的是技术性、咨询性和执行性的职能,他们与政治权力的中心还有一定距离。专家参政绝不等于专家治国。

【Abstract】 During the Progressive Era of the early20century, a new phenomenonappeared in American politics, that is, a large number of professional academics suchas university professors left their campuses and participated in public service asgovernment experts. This phenomenon became increasingly wide-spread andconspicuous as the Progressive reforms were developing throughout the country.After the United Stated entered WWI in1917, academics’ participation in publicservice reached a level which had never been seen.The reason for university academics’ participation in public service asgovernment experts at the beginning of the20thcentury lies in two historical factors.For one thing, a profound reform of higher education had taken place around theyear1870in America, which is commonly called the “Higher Education Revolution”by later scholars. The revolution not only contributed to the rise of American modernresearch universities, but also resulted in the specialization and professionalization ofacademic life, which made the university faculty truly professional academics.Driven by their sense of the social responsibility and their ideal of service, universityacademics were willing to come out of the ivory tower and take part in the public lifeby serving governments with their expertise. For another thing, the Post-bellumAmerica had undergone a great social transformation as a result of industrializationand urbanization, which led to various technical difficulties as well as serious socialproblems. It was progressive reformers’ belief that all these new problems of the“Industrial-Urban” Society couldn’t be resolved by the common sense, moraljudgment or legal knowledge under the traditionally weak governments of the“Agrarian Republic”. Thus, these reformers advocate strong governments as well asefficient governance relying on the expertise provided by university acadmics.Not surprisingly, when the Progressive reforms were launched at state,municipal and federal levels, more and more university academics began toparticipate in public service through different channels. At the state level, Wisconsintook the lead in the partnership and cooperation between the state government and the University of Wisconsin which was quickly known as a model for other states inthe name of “Wisconsin Idea”. Meanwhile, municipal reforms took place inAmerican large cities such as New York City, Chicago, etc. In these cities, universityacademics not only served their municipal governments as individual experts, butalso organized themselves into non-governmental expert organizations to provideadvice for the reforms at the municipal level. Such a non-governmental expertorganization was first founded in New York City and soon had its transplantedcounterparts in more than50cities all over the country. As for the academics’participation in public service as government experts at the federal level, it began totake place in Washington during Theodore Roosevelt’s administrations, and lasted inthe years of Taft and Wilson as the presidents of the United States. Most academicexperts served the federal government in the fields of science, technology,economical regulation, and foreign affairs until WWI. Under the pressure of thewar-time emergency, much more university academics were involved in much widerareas of public service which could hardly be imagined during the peace timeTo be sure, university academics such as professors actively participated inpublic service during the Progressive Era from1900to1920by assistinggovernments to resolve various kinds of political, economic, social problems andeven those problems related to the War. Their participation and assistance not onlycontributed to the improvement of national governance and administrative efficiencyin the process of modern state building, but also realized the social value ofspecialized higher learning and enhanced the social status of American highereducation and university professors. However, such academics participation inpublic service as experts also had its negative outcomes in several repscts such as thefailure to pay enough attention to common folk’s thinking. More importantly, weshould not overestimate academic experts’ actual role and their influence inAmerican politics. After all, the university academics serving as government expertsonly performed technical, advisory or administrative functions, which kept them acertain distance away from the center of political power. Therefore, academics’participation in public service as government experts cannot be equated with what isdescribed in the well-known theory of “Technocracy”.

  • 【网络出版投稿人】 南开大学
  • 【网络出版年期】2014年 07期
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