TY - JOUR
T1 - Burdened by Bureaucracy? Determinants of Administrative Intensity in Public Organisations
AU - Boyne, George A.
AU - Meier, Kenneth J.
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Why does the level of administrative intensity-the bureaucratic component of the workforce-vary across public organisations? We address this question by developing and testing a model that is derived from structural contingency theory and public choice theory. The results show that administrative intensity is higher in small organisations, in turbulent external environments, and in organisations with big budgets. Furthermore, we find that the impact of organisational size is nonlinear, that large size mitigates the effects of turbulence, and that administrative intensity is a cause as well as an effect of bigger budgets. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.
AB - Why does the level of administrative intensity-the bureaucratic component of the workforce-vary across public organisations? We address this question by developing and testing a model that is derived from structural contingency theory and public choice theory. The results show that administrative intensity is higher in small organisations, in turbulent external environments, and in organisations with big budgets. Furthermore, we find that the impact of organisational size is nonlinear, that large size mitigates the effects of turbulence, and that administrative intensity is a cause as well as an effect of bigger budgets. The theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84882605876&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/10967494.2013.817261
DO - 10.1080/10967494.2013.817261
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84882605876
SN - 1096-7494
VL - 16
SP - 307
EP - 327
JO - International Public Management Journal
JF - International Public Management Journal
IS - 2
ER -