Editing Public choice (section)

==Bureaucracy==
Another major sub-field is the study of [[bureaucracy]]. The usual model depicts top bureaucrats as chosen by the chief executive and legislature, depending on whether the democratic system is [[presidential system|presidential]] or [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]]. The typical image of a bureau chief is someone on a fixed salary concerned with pleasing whoever appointed them. But most [[bureaucrats]] are civil servants whose jobs and pay are protected by a civil service system against major changes by their bureau chiefs. This image is often compared with that of a business owner whose profit varies with the success of production and sales, who aims to maximize profit, and who can in an ideal system [[At-will employment|hire and fire employees at will]].<ref name="Niskanen" /> [[William Niskanen]] is generally considered the founder of public choice literature on [[bureaucracy]].<ref name="Niskanen"/>

The anthropological study of bureaucracy has mostly contributed to our understanding of how various institutions of governance operate, why they achieve the outcomes they do, and what their work cultures are. In this sense, the state and its various branches, including village councils and courts of law, have gotten special consideration. A focus has also been placed on non-state welfare and humanitarian organisations, ranging in size from tiny NGOs to significant supranational institutions like the United Nations.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|last=Mathur|first=Nayanika|date=9 November 2017|title=Bureaucracy|encyclopedia=[[Open Encyclopedia of Anthropology]]|editor=Stein, Felix|doi=10.29164/17bureaucracy|url=https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/bureaucracy|access-date=26 May 2023|doi-access=free}}</ref>