Showing papers in "Public Performance & Management Review in 2016"

Citizens’ Use of Social Media in Government, Perceived Transparency, and Trust in Government

Abstract: :Governments are adopting social media to provide complementary information dissemination, communication, and participation channels whereby citizens can access government and government officials and make informed decisions. Using 2009 national e-government survey data from the Pew Research Center, this study finds (1) that use of government social media is significantly and positively associated with perceptions of government transparency, (2) that perceptions of government transparency are positively and significantly related to trust in government, and (3) that perceptions of government transparency mediate the relationship between use of government social media and trust in government. These findings demonstrate that social media is an effective means for government to improve citizens’ trust in government by enhancing their perceptions of government transparency. The study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the mediating role of perceived government transparency...

Total Quality Management and Performance

Abstract: Total quality management (TQM) continues to be promoted by governments across the world and forms part of the improvement strategies for many public organizations. However, there are no empirical studies of the relationship between TQM and performance in the public sector. A critical review of the 19 private sector studies is undertaken to identify the impact of TQM on performance. These studies do not offer comprehensive support for the TQM-performance hypothesis, and there are many unresolved issues in the evidence. A program of research on public organizations should be undertaken that would test theoretical models of the link between TQM and performance. The research should be conducted longitudinally, in different types of public services and different organizational contexts; to test the “one-size-fits-all” assumption in the TQM model. Such studies would allow prescriptions for the adoption and implementation of TQM in public organizations to be made with more confidence.

Appropriateness and Use of Performance Information in the Budgeting Process: Some Experiences from German and Italian Municipalities

Abstract: This article contributes to the debate on the use of performance information in the context of public sector performance management. Based on case studies, the authors analyze the appropriateness of the performance information provided in the newly established performance budgets of municipalities in Germany and Italy. They also examine the interest of politicians and senior managers in using such information for decision-making and monitoring within the municipal budget cycle. They find that the use of performance information is generally quite modest, and that the interest of different local actors varies to a great extent. Politicians are generally less interested in such information than top managers, particularly chief financial officers. The results are discussed by applying a theoretical framework based on institutional and legitimacy theories, and are compared with the literature on performance information use.

Organizational Effectiveness Reputation in the Nonprofit Sector

Abstract: :Public organizations are increasingly relying on nonprofit partners for the delivery of public services, a trend that makes performance assessments of nonprofit organizations important for the allocation of government resources. However, nonprofits engage multiple stakeholders, and this leads to complex sets of organizational goals and highly subjective assessments of nonprofit effectiveness. We develop a literature-based model to understand the subjective assessments of organizational performance by stakeholders that taken together constitute an organization’s effectiveness reputation. In this model, effectiveness reputation is impacted by stakeholder trust and satisfaction, which are in turn impacted by output ambiguity and stakeholder involvement. We find support for our model with a structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis based on survey data of organizational stakeholders (n = 284). We propose further research steps and highlight practical implications for nonprofit managers and public a...

Do Donors Care About Results? An Analysis of Nonprofit Arts and Cultural Organizations

Abstract: :Nonprofits are facing increasing pressure to measure and demonstrate their performance outcomes. However, we know little about the relationship between a nonprofit’s performance and its ability to attract donations. Do donors value an organization’s performance information when making giving decisions? We find that organizations that are more successful (i.e., attract larger audiences to their programs and more visitors to their websites) tend to receive fewer contributions. Despite a growing culture of performance measurement, the empirical evidence does not provide strong support of its relevance among donors. A plausible theoretical reasoning is that better performance outcomes create the image of success, making organizations look less needy. These results call for more research on the link between performance outcomes and philanthropy.

Implementing Performance Reporting in Local Government: A Cross-Countries Comparison

Abstract: Providing information on economy, efficiency, and effectiveness is one of the most important innovations in local government management, with performance reporting emerging as a new component for accountability and decision-making. This article compares 17 countries to ascertain whether there is convergence between them, studying key issues in the implementation of performance reporting by local governments. It also identifies some lessons that can be of use to countries that want to implement or improve performance reporting systems. Findings show that there is no convergence in practice or results, and that institutional factors influence the implementation of performance reporting; in many countries, performance reporting has been introduced by central and regional governments as a mechanism to control local government activities in order to enhance performance. Austerity has underlined the importance of performance information, especially in Southern European countries, but more must be done b...

Identifying a Knowledge Management Approach for Public-Private Partnerships

Abstract: This article examines the knowledge gaps in public-private partnerships (PPPs) for infrastructure, and the preferred knowledge management approach for public managers to address them. By examining transcripts from semi-structured interviews with professionals with direct experience working on PPPs in Texas and Virginia, the analysis indicates that knowledge gaps are greatest in the areas of risk assessment and allocation, public involvement, and consultant management. The findings also indicate that situated, experience-based approaches to identifying and sharing knowledge on PPPs are preferred to transfer learning. The summary implications suggest that even state agencies with extensive experience with PPPs face large knowledge deficiencies in this form of public-private collaboration, and that interpersonal, ongoing methods of sharing practical experiences are critical for cultivating expertise for designing and implementing PPPs.

The Impact of Social Capital on Employees’ Knowledge-Sharing Behavior: An Empirical Analysis of U.S. Federal Agencies

Abstract: :Recent critical challenges, including terrorism and an aging workforce, have brought to the attention of U.S. government agencies the need to share their knowledge across and within government organizations. In response to the growing awareness of knowledge sharing in the public sector, data from the Federal Human Capital Survey (FHCS) were utilized to develop and test a social-capital-theory-based extension of the relationship between social capital dimension and knowledge-sharing behavior by looking at the interaction effects between social capital dimensions and information technology (IT). The study also explores whether the social capital dimensions that affect knowledge sharing differ across three managerial levels (nonsupervisory, supervisory, and senior executive service). The findings provide insights and management strategies into social capital to stimulate knowledge sharing among employees in organizations. The contributions and implications of the findings are discussed.

The Effects of Diversity and Transformational Leadership Climate on Organizational Citizenship Behavior in the U.S. Federal Government: An Organizational-Level Longitudinal Study

Abstract: Although interpersonal conflicts caused by social categorization processes in diversified workforces impede organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), little empirical research has been conducted o...

Participative Management and Perceived Organizational Performance: The Moderating Effects of Innovative Organizational Culture

Abstract: :Participative management and innovation are major themes of recent organizational reforms in the United States and other countries. Using a South Korean version of the Organizational Assessment Survey of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, this study assesses how participative management and innovative culture are associated with public employees’ perceived organizational performance in the South Korean central government. The study finds that both are positively related to perceived organizational performance, but that the relationship between participative management and perceived organizational performance (i.e., internal efficiency) is moderated by employees’ perceptions of the organization’s innovative culture. Specifically, participative management has weaker effects on internal efficiency in high-innovation cultures than in low-innovation cultures.

Electronic Government at the Local Level

Abstract: Much like businesses with electronic commerce, public organizations are beginning to embrace electronic government (e-government). This article defines the term e-government, discusses the literature oflocal-Ievel e-government, and documents the adoption and sophistication of e-government among U.S. local governments. It employs data from a survey conducted in 2000 to examine local adoption of e-government. E-government adoption among local governments generally tracks previously documented patterns of information technology adoption, which show a statistically significant relationship between adoption and such demographic variables as population size, form and type of government, region, and metro status. The article compares the results of that survey to a normative model of e-government maturity and finds that the emergence of e-government at the local level is still in its formative stages. The analysis also examines perceived impacts from e-govemment, sophistication of e-government offerings, barrier...

Organizational Climate, Leadership, Organization Size, and Aspiration for Innovation in Government Agencies

Abstract: :Scholars of organizational innovation emphasize the importance of employees’ perceptions and point to dissatisfaction with the status quo as a force facilitating innovation adoption and innovative behavior. This study applies the efficiency-focused perspective on innovative behavior to explore how perceptions of organizational climate and leadership explain employees’ aspiration for innovation in public organizations. It notes that the association of the predictors varies according to organization size (number of full-time employees). Using samples of full-time employees in South Korean government agencies, regression analyses suggest that employees’ perceptions of the hierarchical climate, as opposed to the innovative climate, relate positively to their aspirations for organizational innovation. One unexpected result is the positive association of the current facilitative leadership with the criterion variable. Organization size moderates the influence of the predictors, except for the current f...

The Role of Performance Feedback and Job Autonomy in Mitigating the Negative Effect of Role Ambiguity on Employee Satisfaction

Abstract: :The job demands-control (JDC) model suggests that job demands and job control (job autonomy) combine interactively in predicting job-related outcomes. While the model has been widely tested, studies using it have often failed to demonstrate the predicted interaction effects of job demands and job control on measures of a wide range of outcomes. The current study proposes performance feedback as a different situational variable that could relate to job demands and job control, and examines the three-way interaction effects among role ambiguity, performance feedback, and job autonomy in predicting employee satisfaction. Analyzing data from the 2012 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, the study finds that performance feedback mitigates the negative effect of role ambiguity on employee satisfaction, but is significantly stronger in the high job autonomy condition. This study contributes to theoretical knowledge of the way job demands and job autonomy interact in producing motivational outcomes by offe...

Divergence and Convergence in the Diffusion of Performance Management in China

Abstract: This research focuses on policy diffusion of performance management in authoritarian China. A three-stage theory of diffusion is proposed by conducting a process that traces divergence and convergence in the diffusion of performance management in China. When a superior government only has a policy goal, the inferior governments, competing for innovation, will develop divergent policy instruments. When the superior government’s policy goal and policy content seem clear, local governments, competing for loyalty or bandwagoning, adjust their diverged policy instruments to converged ones conforming to the superior’s policy content. Finally, when the superior government issues a systematic set of policy goals, content, and instruments, it may use coercive power to promote diffusion. In the process, when the contents of diffusion are different, the superior government applies different levels of coercive power, and the mechanisms, characteristics, and outcomes of diffusion also differ. This research cla...

Influence of the Tendering Mechanism in the Performance of Public-Private Partnerships: A Transaction Cost Approach

Abstract: This article develops a theoretical model, based primarily on transaction costs, with which to compare the various tendering mechanisms for public-private partnership (PPP) projects. In particular, the model contrasts negotiated procedures with the open procedure, as defined by current European Union legislation on public tendering. The model includes both ex ante transaction costs (borne during the tendering stage) and ex post transaction costs (such as enforcement costs, renegotiation costs, and costs arising from litigation between partners) and explains the trade-off between them. The bottom line is that it is difficult to justify the extensive use of negotiated procedures in many countries.

Self-efficacy as a Mediator and Moderator Between Emotional Labor and Job Satisfaction: A Case Study of Public Service Employees in Taiwan

Abstract: This study examines the perplexing relationship between emotional labor and job satisfaction in the public service arena and in a non-Western context. The results of regression analyses from a dataset of 315 frontline employees in Taiwan support the concept that different forms of emotional labor have distinct patterns of relationship with job satisfaction. Furthermore, self-efficacy mediates the positive effect of emotional labor and alleviates its negative relationship with job satisfaction. These findings are a reminder that while emotional labor can be taxing, the potential for job satisfaction to increase, rather than decrease, through effective management of such labor should not be underestimated.

Eco-Helping and Eco-Civic Engagement in the Public Workplace

Abstract: Despite growing interest in the environmental performance and management of public organizations, relatively little is known about the steps individual public employees are taking at their own discretion to promote environmental sustainability and environmental stewardship in the workplace. This article examines public employees’ participation in eco-helping and eco-civic engagement in the workplace. Eco-helping occurs when employees encourage colleagues to perform pro-environmental behaviors in the workplace; eco-civic engagement refers to employees’ voluntary participation in the organization’s pro-environmental activities. The research objective is to identify motivational and attitudinal correlates of eco-helping and eco-civic engagement in the public workplace. Findings suggest that environmental concern and public service motivation (PSM) have positive relationships with both eco-helping and eco-civic engagement in the public workplace. Organizational commitment, however, is only positively ...

Performance in the National Health Service

Abstract: This article critically considers the evolution of performance indicators and performance measures in the U.K. National Health Service. After examining the development of performance indicators and contemporary scholarship on the subject, the author finds the performance measurement and reporting regime implemented by the New Labour government to be poorly conceived and in danger of causing distortions in the patterns of health care provision. It appears ill defined and, as a consequence, poorly executed. The author considers cases where the performance regime appears to be unable to measure the activity of health services, a project in community rehabilitation, and a public health provision in the southwest. Finally, the author makes some suggestions for the basis of an alternative performance measurement regime.

Coping with Complexity: Internal Audit and Complex Governance

Abstract: Complexity, a key issue in accountability research, is almost coterminous with modern governance. Increased complexity is a key external contingency driving analyses of public administration. Scholars often conclude that “traditional” forms of centralized accountability and control are no longer feasible in the face of complexity, but at the same time, internal audit in government, as a form of centralized accountability and control, is expanding its scope. This apparent paradox is addressed by means of mixed research methods focusing on how internal auditors in government understand and cope with complexity. The article demonstrates that auditors do so by hybridizing values and through professional and relational anchoring of practices. The results suggest that public administration scholars should not write off centralized control in complex systems of governance. The article also suggests that new accountability issues arise, relating to professional autonomy and influence inside government.

Online Versus Offline Participation: Has the Democratic Potential of the Internet Been Realized? Analysis of a Participatory Budgeting System in Korea

Abstract: :Few studies have empirically examined the effectiveness of online and offline systems in involving citizens in policymaking. The present study asks whether the online and offline modes of participation vary in their impacts on policy decision-making. To answer this question, we analyze and assess the effectiveness of the two types of participation channels by tracking individual citizens’ opinions proposed through the participatory budgeting system of the Bukgu (Northern) District Office in Gwangju Metropolitan City in Korea. The results show that offline participation channels are more effective than online channels because of their high levels of representativeness and deliberativeness. There is also variation between offline channels. When citizens engage in deliberative participation processes, their opinions are more likely to be reflected in budget or policy decision-making. In this sense, our study represents an initial step toward revealing the workings behind residents’ participation and...

Internal Performance-Based Steering in Public Sector Organizations: Examining the Effect of Organizational Autonomy and External Result Control

Abstract: The use of performance management techniques by public sector organizations is believed to lead to a more efficient and better-performing public sector. Using multicountry survey data, this article provides an understanding of the effect of organizational autonomy and external result control on the use of internal performance-based steering toward lower hierarchical levels in public sector organizations. Results show that result control matters, as does financial management autonomy, but no effects can be observed for personnel management autonomy.

Transaction Costs in Public–Private Partnerships: The Weight of Institutional Quality in Developing Countries Revisited

Abstract: Unlike the case of private hybrid organizational structures, the institutional dimension in a public–private partnership (PPP) is no longer exogenous to the decisions of the partners in a t...

Does Fiscal Austerity Affect Political Decision-Makers’ Use and Perception of Performance Information?

Abstract: This article investigates whether the fiscal environment that politicians face influences their use of performance information. It poses two competing hypotheses, suggesting that fiscal austerity either increases politicians’ use of performance information, because they are more concerned about keeping up good performance in times of austerity, or decreases their use, because balancing the books is more vital in times of austerity, and therefore keeping within the budget gains political emphasis relative to sustaining good performance. The link between fiscal austerity and politicians’ use of performance information is tested using survey and documentary data from Danish municipalities. The article concludes that politicians who face high fiscal austerity use performance information to a lesser extent than colleagues who face less fiscal austerity, thus indicating the use of performance information is “the politics of good times.”

Will Performance Management Restore Citizens’ Faith in Public Education?

Abstract: :Over the past decade, policymakers have expanded the use of performance management in public education in the United States. Education researchers have focused heavily on the ways these practices and policies shape teaching and learning, but have given much less attention to other expected outcomes of performance management. This article explores two specific areas where more research is needed: whether performance management improves public satisfaction and trust in public education, and whether it improves public oversight of education. We provide background on relevant educational issues and context for the study of performance management in education scholarship. Our goal is to draw additional researchers into this important line of inquiry.

Who Are the Policy Workers, and What Are They Doing? Citizen’s Heuristics and Democratic Accountability in Complex Governance

Abstract: Two critical questions for the study of accountability in contemporary governance focus attention on the citizen rather than the official: (a) whether a citizen can identify a policy worker, that is, the bureaucrat, contractor, or other actor acting in pursuit of a legislated policy goal, and (b) whether a citizen can evaluate policy work that is done to further a legislated policy goal. Both identification and evaluation prove tricky to assess in a great deal of policy work, rendering accountability an important, but elusive, democratic value. This article provides a framework for analysts to understand when and why accountability works from a citizen’s perspective and what incentives policy workers and politicians have when it does.

Impact of Product Characteristics and Market Conditions on Contract Type: Use of Fixed-Price Versus Cost-Reimbursement Contracts in the U.S. Department of Defense

Abstract: :Transaction cost economics is used to produce a conceptual framework that helps explain public-sector contract decisions When a product is easy to specify, easy to produce, and there is a thick market of buyers and sellers, fixed-price contracts are more likely; when a product is difficult to produce, difficult to specify, and the market has few buyers and sellers, cost-reimbursement contracts are more likely These arguments were tested with five years of data (FY 2004–2008) drawn from the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), the most comprehensive and largely untapped database on federal contracting practices Over 2,000 Defense Department contracts were examined, charting contract type (ie, fixed-price vs cost-reimbursement) across simple and complex products The results confirm conventional wisdom about public sector procurement practice, at least within the Defense Department: product characteristics and market conditions drive the use of fixed-price and cost-reimbursement contracts

A Collaboration-Based Model of Work Motivation and Role Ambiguity in Public Organizations

Abstract: Intra-organizational collaboration has long been recognized as a potential source of improved performance for public organizations. In collaborative organizations, frontline employees can leverage interpersonal networks to access a broad pool of expertise and experience, resources that can then be used to overcome obstacles or take advantage of emergent opportunities. Given this link to goals, information flow, and empowerment, this study examines how intra-organizational collaboration affects work motivation, and posits that reduced role ambiguity plays a key role in this relationship. Building on previous literature, three species of collaboration—vertical interpersonal, horizontal interpersonal, and inter–work unit collaboration—are discussed. Using data from a large survey of American federal employees, structural equation modeling is used to test the hypothesized model. The results of the analysis suggest that reduced role ambiguity functions as an important mediating mechanism linking intra-...

Connecting Knowledge of Rule-breaking and Perceived Red Tape: How Behavioral Attribution Influences Red Tape Perceptions

Abstract: Since the 1990s, governmental strategies for enhancing organizational performance have sought to reduce the amount of red tape public employees face. These strategies assume that employees’ perceptions of rules as red tape stem solely from the actual content of rules, but a sizable body of public management research has revealed the psychological processes through which red tape perceptions develop. This article builds on psychological process models of perceived red tape by applying attribution theory to explore how an organization’s social context influences red tape perceptions. Findings illustrate that individuals will judge a rule to be red tape based on information conveyed second-hand regarding the rule-breaking behavior of others.

Reconsidering Gaming in an Accountability Relationship: The Case of Minority Purchasing in Florida

Abstract: Performance metrics are intended to reinforce accountability in the principal-agent relationship between administrators and elected officials. This form of accountability is often assumed to improve democratic responsiveness and policy outcomes. However, as many scholars have noted, performance measurement systems often result in the intractable problem of administrative gaming, which can dilute accountability in the principal-agent relationship. This qualitative case study generates theory on how and why administrative agents engage in gaming. It develops a typology and discusses the importance of understanding gaming from the perspective of administrators.

The Prevalence of Reinvention Reforms in Local Governments and Their Relationship with Organizational Goal Clarity and Employee Job Satisfaction

Abstract: :Drawing on a sample of U.S. local government employees, this study examines whether the prevalence of reinvention reforms within cities affects the perceived clarity of organizational goals and job satisfaction of workers. Results from an ordered logistic regression and a series of simulated predicated probabilities indicate that job satisfaction and goal clarity are at their highest levels in cities that have a strong reinvention focus; conversely, the probability of average or below-average job satisfaction is higher in cities with a weaker reinvention focus and when goals are more ambiguous. Findings further suggest that reinvention reforms may clarify goals for workers and improve job satisfaction, but that organizations should take separate steps to clarify goals for employees.