How Institutional Culture Trumps Tier Effects: Evidence from Government Responsiveness to FOI Requests. (14th August 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Poole, Ed Gareth
• Is Part Of: Journal of public administration research and theory. Volume 29:Number 2(2019)
• Page Start: 210
• Page End: 226
• Publication Date: 2018-08-14
• Subjects: Public administration -- Periodicals; Policy sciences -- Periodicals; 351.05
• DOI: 10.1093/jopart/muy039
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1053-1858

Abstract

Abstract: Claims that decentralization could improve government accountability and responsiveness led to its adoption as a policy objective across the globe. But recent empirical work finds little evidence of "tier effects" in practice; instead, significant variation exists even between most-similar bodies. Recognizing the value of Freedom of Information (FOI) in facilitating large-scale data collection, and that the UK's institutional diversity offers an important source of between - and within -tier variation, I compile a large new data set by emailing two separate FOI requests to 812 UK public bodies with an executive function. Identifying significant variation in timeliness and quality between UK territories, I argue that differing foundational motives can help explain patterns of responsiveness between institutions established by transparency-facing reforms and those designed to resolve conflict. A lack of evidence that lower-tier governments are generally more responsive reaffirms the recent challenges to the more fundamental claims about decentralization that informed academic debate and real-world practice.