Analysis on the Role of University Budgeters in Iran, Using Wildavsky's Budgetary Roles

Abstract

Introduction: It seems to be very vital to survey on university budget in a country like Iran, in which universities and research institute's financial resources are obtained through public budget allocation. The aim of this research is to understand the intellectual perception of budgeteers at Iranian universities and analyze its consequence using Wildavsky's Budgetary Roles. Research Method: In this paper we are going to present a result of a survey form Wildavsky budgetary roles perspective, which has done using Grounded Theory method. Participants are chosen from budget department at universities and research institutes, Ministry of Science, Research and Technology (MSRT) and also Management and Planning Organization (MPO) of Iran. Based on the research result, two groups of "Guardians" and "Spenders" are recognized according to the Wildavsky's budgetary roles. Results: Results display that universities and research institutes, as budget spenders understand budget as a negotiation process that lead to slack in budgeting. On the other hand, intellectual perception at MSRT and MPO is "budgeting as an output oriented process" and "budgeting as an information based process" respectively. The consequence of these budget perceptions among budget guardians is standardizing universities practice. Conclusion: According to the result, intellectual perception of budget guardians and spenders in Iranian universities are not congruent and this lead to contradictory consequence in budgeting system. The result of this research can be stated as an important factor in success at new budgeting methods implementation.

Keywords

• "budgetary roles"
• "university budget"
• "intellectual perception"
• "grounded theory"
• "wildavsky budgetary roles"