Beyond the Call of Duty? Essays on motivation and self-selection of bureaucrats
Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: The existence and effects of public service motivation (PSM), or altruism, among\\nbureaucrats, is a well-debated topic among economists and administrative scientists\\n(see e.g. Perry and Hondeghem 2008a, Besley and Ghatak 2005, Francois 2000\\nand 2007). However, the debate about motivation of public sector workers and its\\ne\\xc2\\xa4ects on the quality and quantity of public services is not restricted to academia.\\nMany journalists, politicians, and common civilians discuss this issue in the media,\\nparliament, and the streets. The reasons for this lively debate is twofold. First of\\nall, public sector workers are usually paid through taxes. Taxpayers want value for\\nmoney. A second reason for the public interest in the motivation of bureaucrats and\\nits e\\xc2\\xa4ects, is that the public, as the clients of public services, encounters the merits\\nand demerits of the e\\xc2\\xa4orts provided by public sector workers. All the more, since the\\npublic often has few alternative providers to choose from. Welfare recipients have no\\nother option than to ask their municipality for bene\\xc2\\x85ts. Children attending primary\\nschools can often only choose from a few neighbouring schools. Crime victims go to\\ntheir local police o\\xc2\\xa2 cer and the injured go to the nearest hospital.
Author: Margaretha Buurman
Language: English
Subfield: Public Administration
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1511295110