Guest lecture at the IDHEAP in Lausanne on the topic "Bringing street-level bureaucrats’ behaviour and accountability regimes into policy evaluation" am 22.01.2024
Guest lecture from Prof. Dr. Eva Thomann at the University Institute for Public Administration (IDHEAP) in Lausanne on January 22 2024 on the topic "Bringing street-level bureaucrats’ behaviour and accountability regimes into policy evaluation"
How does the behaviour of those who represent the front lines of government policy influence the impact of policy in practice? Grassroots civil servants, or street-level bureaucrats, are responsible for policy implementation, they operate at the base of public organisations and they are tasked with either delivering public services or imposing sanctions. Their discretionary powers make them de facto policy makers, while their interactions with citizens play a crucial role in the compliance and adoption of concrete policies. Therefore, the link between street-level bureaucrats and the final products of the political-administrative implementation process is crucial in policy evaluation.
Five key points for evaluators are emphasised.
First: policy outcomes are crucially determined by the behaviour of street-level bureaucrats, who are people with bounded rationality.
Second: Their attitudes towards policy are a crucial factor in determining the practical outcomes of policy.
Third: The way street-level bureaucrats deal with their work environment and administrative burdens changes the outcomes for the target groups for better or worse.
Fourth: The personality of street-level bureaucrats has a fundamental impact on policy implementation.
Fifth: Biases and prejudices shape the way street-level bureaucrats respond to policies and client contacts - with wider societal implications.
Watch the video of the full conference here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f614JyMyOQ