Federal Bureaucrats' Attitudes toward a Democratic Ideology

In 1964 a prominent scientist, Dr. Herbert McClosky, published a study on consensus and ideology in American politics.1 His study, which focused on popular and elite consensus surrounding American ideology, demonstrated that considerable variation exists around the values held by two large segments of the American populace, the general electorate and the political influentials. This intriguing analysis raised a number of legitimate questions which called for further research. This article reports on research that serves as an expansion of the McClosky study in some respects, but is original in other respects. We chose to apply certain of the McClosky postulates and apply them to a very unresearched segment of a democratic society, the career bureaucracy. Of principal concern was the attitude bureaucrats or national planners hold toward certain ideals or principles. Also, what effect, if any, do the agency affiliations, education levels, and years in the public service have on their attitudes?