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General Douglas MacArthur: Supreme Public Administrator of Post–World War II Japan
Author(s) -
Leavitt William M.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
public administration review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.721
H-Index - 139
eISSN - 1540-6210
pISSN - 0033-3352
DOI - 10.1111/puar.12326
Subject(s) - world war ii , supreme court , population , law , political science , economic history , public administration , history , management , sociology , demography , economics
This article examines General Douglas MacArthur ’s six years as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers in post–World War II Japan. MacArthur was appointed by President Harry S. Truman in 1945 to preside over and administer the reconstruction of postwar Japan. No American serving in the role of a public administrator has ever had a more difficult task than the one MacArthur took on in Japan. At the end of World War II , Japan was devastated, and the entire population faced starvation. MacArthur ’s administrative style and his successes and failures in Japan are examined in this Administrative Profile. Fifty years after his death, the influence of MacArthur ’s policies during his tenure as Supreme Commander are still felt in Japan .