{"title":"Social Vulnerability, Equity, and Representative Bureaucracy: Evidence From the Allocation of Disaster Assistance Fund in the United States","authors":"Sungyoon Lee, Gang Chen","doi":"10.1111/puar.70029","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70029","url":null,"abstract":"Prior research has found disparities in the allocation of disaster relief funds in the U.S. However, little attention has been paid to the role of bureaucracy in public assistance (PA) fund allocation that possibly contributes to these inequalities. This study examines whether minority bureaucratic representation promotes the allocation of PA funds in counties with more socially vulnerable populations. Multilevel modeling is utilized to test the hypotheses, using a panel dataset of 8608 county‐year observations from U.S. counties for the years 2006 to 2019. The results show that the level of disaster relief funding does not increase in proportion to disaster damage for socially vulnerable communities to the same extent as it does for less vulnerable communities. In addition, in highly vulnerable counties, PA funds relative to damage tend to be allocated at a higher rate as the share of minority officials increases, narrowing the existing gap between high‐ and low‐vulnerability counties.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"220 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145188469","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How Do Algorithmic Decision‐Making Systems Used in Public Benefits Determinations Fail? Insights From Legal Challenges","authors":"Esra Gules‐Guctas","doi":"10.1111/puar.70043","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70043","url":null,"abstract":"When algorithmic decision‐making systems fail to function as intended, they become conduits for administrative error and risk producing arbitrary determinations through the very technologies meant to prevent them. Analysis of 71 federal and state court dockets contesting algorithm‐based determinations in disability, unemployment, and nutrition assistance programs shows how this risk manifests in practice. Findings show that deviations from legally prescribed outcomes occur when the translation of statutory requirements into computational logic is compromised by flawed data, problematic design choices, or inherent system limitations. These algorithmic administrative errors are neither isolated glitches nor purely technical problems; they constitute a systemic governance problem that cuts across legal, organizational, and technical domains. Addressing them requires coordinated oversight across all three areas, rather than reliance on post hoc troubleshooting.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145140859","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Evan M. Berman, Eduardo Grin, Gabriela Lotta, Fernando L. Abrucio, Lauro Gonzalez, Maira Gabriela Santos de Souza, Yasmim Marques de Melo, Jaedson Gomes dos Santos
{"title":"Brazil's Public Administration and the Challenge of New Democracies: Promoting Social Inclusion","authors":"Evan M. Berman, Eduardo Grin, Gabriela Lotta, Fernando L. Abrucio, Lauro Gonzalez, Maira Gabriela Santos de Souza, Yasmim Marques de Melo, Jaedson Gomes dos Santos","doi":"10.1111/puar.70045","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70045","url":null,"abstract":"Brazil's public administration (PA) has sought to strengthen democratic governance through an emphasis on social inclusion. Since democratization in 1988, reforms have aimed to address entrenched inequalities along with decentralization and professionalism spurring innovations in social inclusion. This article examines Brazil's PA and highlights its key PA innovations, specifically: (a) inclusive public policy councils with substantial oversight of implementation; (b) legislative public accountability bodies with authority to impose penalties; (c) devolution granting far-reaching administrative, political, and financial constitutional autonomy to cities to enhance responsiveness and innovation; and (d) wide-ranging guaranteed income programs to reduce poverty. This article also draws attention to co-existing PA “islands of excellence” and efforts to address such challenges as rule-bound bureaucracies, clientelism, and weak institutional capacities in the Global South. It concludes with implications for strengthening public managers' leadership in democratic governance.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"18 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145140862","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Victor J. St. John, Gregory D. Wilson, Long Tran, Lydia Applin, Douglas Evans
{"title":"Administrative Burden in Higher Education: Race, Criminal Records, and Street‐Level Bureaucrats in College Admissions","authors":"Victor J. St. John, Gregory D. Wilson, Long Tran, Lydia Applin, Douglas Evans","doi":"10.1111/puar.70042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70042","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates how administrative burden in college admissions affects individuals with criminal records, with attention to racial disparities. Grounded in administrative burden theory and the role of street‐level bureaucrats, it examines how admissions representatives respond to applicants with disclosed criminal histories. Through a correspondence audit experiment, fictitious applicants—Tyrone (presumed Black) and Christopher (presumed White)—sent inquiries to institutions of higher education (IHE) about how a criminal record might affect admissions. While most responses did not differ significantly in tone, warmth, or encouragement, Tyrone faced greater administrative burden in two key areas: Tyrone was more likely to receive a list of formal procedural requirements and to experience longer response times. These differences reflect psychological and compliance costs that disproportionately affect minoritized applicants. Findings underscore the need for targeted policy reforms that reduce discretionary barriers and promote more equitable pathways into IHEs for individuals with criminal justice involvement.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"15 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145140863","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Origins and Intellectual Structure of the Deep State Literature","authors":"Fatih Demiroz","doi":"10.1111/puar.70040","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70040","url":null,"abstract":"Despite the recent interest in the deep state topic, the concept remains elusive. This research utilizes bibliometric metadata from 64 articles published between 2009 and 2024 to identify the intellectual structure and origins of the concept. The findings indicate that discussions on the deep state are fragmented across disciplines such as political science, public administration, law, international relations, and history, intersecting with themes like democratization, civilian‐military relations, and informal networks, yet the concept has not formed into a standalone idea. Interpretations of the concept differ regionally and temporally: in the Middle East, it is associated with civilian‐military dynamics; in Thailand, with interactions among the monarchy, judiciary, and officials; in the United States, historically, the focus has been the military‐industrial complex, which shifted to the administrative state post‐Trump. These variations highlight the need for a comprehensive theoretical framework, for which public administration could provide essential theoretical and methodological support.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"35 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145116358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Bradley E. Wright, Shahidul Hassan, Darwin A. Baluran
{"title":"Motivation, Meaning, and Burnout: Understanding Frontline Public Service Workers' Work Experiences During Turbulent Times","authors":"Bradley E. Wright, Shahidul Hassan, Darwin A. Baluran","doi":"10.1111/puar.70037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70037","url":null,"abstract":"Understanding how public organizations can lower employee burnout is important because burnout negatively affects both employee well‐being and service effectiveness. This study explores whether public service motivation (PSM) can help alleviate burnout among frontline public sector workers, who frequently encounter high job demands and conflicting roles that heighten burnout risks. Analyzing two‐wave matched survey data from police officers collected in 2019 and 2021, this study examines whether PSM reduces burnout by strengthening perceptions of work prosocial impact. Results show that PSM's impact on burnout varies by burnout type, with a stronger effect on work depersonalization than on emotional exhaustion. By focusing on work prosocial impact as a mediating factor, this study helps to explain past conflicting findings. It enhances understanding of the PSM‐burnout link and suggests that fostering a sense of positive impact could be an effective strategy for public organizations to reduce frontline worker burnout, especially during crisis periods.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"77 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145093578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Authoritarian Drift, Variegated Paths: Mapping Administrative Transformation Strategies Under Illiberal Rule","authors":"Michael W. Bauer","doi":"10.1111/puar.70028","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70028","url":null,"abstract":"This article develops a typology of illiberal rule by identifying four distinct models of administrative transformation: neoauthoritarian, neopatrimonial, neoreactionary, and neoclientelist. Drawing on cases including Viktor Orbán, Donald Trump, Javier Milei, and Andrés Manuel López Obrador, it argues that illiberal leaders reshape bureaucracies through diverse strategies of control, each rooted in specific conceptions of the state and particular modes of bureaucratic design. In light of the varying illiberal trajectories, the article concludes by proposing differentiated reform strategies tailored to the specific threats posed by each variant of illiberal rule, aiming to bolster bureaucratic resilience accordingly. The analysis calls for a reorientation of public administration theory—from a focus on compliance to a normative conception of civil servants as stewards of democratic order.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"82 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145072774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A “Watershed” Moment for Collaboration: The Impacts of Legislation and Network Governance on Environmental Outcomes","authors":"Yixin Liu, Jiho Kim, Tina Nabatchi","doi":"10.1111/puar.70031","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70031","url":null,"abstract":"Cross‐boundary collaboration is a common strategy used to address environmental issues, but scholars do not yet fully understand what makes a difference in the outcomes of externally directed collaborations. To fill this gap, we examine whether a piece of state legislation that authorizes collaborative watershed restoration projects improves water quality. Using Oregon data from 1980 to 2021 and a regression discontinuity in time design, we find a 5% improvement in water quality after the legislation was enacted. Furthermore, our longitudinal analyses show that network properties and management within collaborative projects are key factors underlying this improvement. In general, networks led by collaborative governance regimes and local governments are more effective than those led by citizen groups or state agencies. However, state agencies show the strongest capacity to manage projects with multiple goals. These findings underscore the importance of institution design and network governance in achieving successful environmental collaboration.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"70 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145072778","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anthony M. Bertelli, Silvia Cannas, Katerina Sharova, Iker Uriarte
{"title":"Anchoring Institutional Values in Democracy: A Systematic Review, a Constructive Critique, and a Research Agenda","authors":"Anthony M. Bertelli, Silvia Cannas, Katerina Sharova, Iker Uriarte","doi":"10.1111/puar.70036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70036","url":null,"abstract":"Values are ideals of what is desirable for the individual, profession, organization, or institution. Institutional values attach to organizations because of their place in a political order, capturing broad governance concerns that extend beyond the details of management and technical administration. What institutional values do public administration scholars study, how do they study them, and how do those values relate to democracy? Our comprehensive and systematic review of the contents of public administration journals reveals ambiguity about the nature of values and the level of social structure at which they operate. As a constructive step forward, we offer an analytic framework of what we call <jats:italic>democratic anchors</jats:italic>, conceptions of values that convey essential democratic content, that can improve the empirical study of how democracy is operationalized into norms of practice in public administration.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145017159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Missing Link: Identifying Digital Intermediaries in E‐Government","authors":"Sergio Toro‐Maureira, Alejandro Olivares, Rocío Sáez‐Vergara, Sebastián Valenzuela, Macarena Valenzuela, Teresa Correa","doi":"10.1111/puar.70033","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.70033","url":null,"abstract":"Digital platforms are transforming how governments deliver public services; however, many citizens still depend on third parties to access them. This article identifies and classifies these “digital intermediaries” drawing from a national survey in Chile—a country with high digitalization but deep digital inequality. We find two major types of intermediaries: “close” actors (family and peers) and “hierarchical” actors (politicians, bureaucrats, and community leaders). These intermediaries support citizens who lack digital skills or access, playing an essential role in facilitating e‐government. The findings challenge the notion that digitalization guarantees direct, unmediated access to public services and underscore the importance of considering human support systems in digital governance.","PeriodicalId":48431,"journal":{"name":"Public Administration Review","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":8.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145017158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"管理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}