Publication Date
2020
Document Type
Thesis
Committee Members
Mary V. Wenning, Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Daniel N. Warshawsky, Ph.D. (Committee Member); David M. Bukovinsky, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Degree Name
Master of Public Administration (MPA)
Abstract
As the dominant public management paradigm today, performance measurement and management systems are fundamental to increasing efficiency, accountability, and service quality in the public sector. Research into the practice at all levels of government has been expanding for decades in developed countries. However, the small local governments that comprise most U.S. municipalities are frequently overlooked as a topic of academic inquiry in public administration. This study aims to shed light on the extent to which the performance measurement methods prevalent at the state and federal levels have spread to small municipalities. Using elite interviewing methods and the four-point approach to sampling for interview-based research, 15 public officials were randomly recruited from Ohio communities with populations of 5,000 and less to participate in semi-structured interviews focused around performance measurement use in their municipalities. Key findings reveal low levels of familiarity with the concept, minimal use of performance measures in service areas, no use of measures in partnerships and service agreements, and low levels of familiarity with formal strategic planning methods. Participant perceptions of citizen engagement and participation in the governing process were mixed. The study concludes with a discussion of results, limitations of the study design, and implications for future research.
Page Count
132
Department or Program
Department of Urban Affairs and Geography
Year Degree Awarded
2020
Copyright
Copyright 2020, some rights reserved. My ETD may be copied and distributed only for non-commercial purposes and may not be modified. All use must give me credit as the original author.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
