Attitudinal Divergence and Convergence Concerning Collaboration: A Descriptive Case of Public Education in Georgia. Issue 6 (1st November 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Wightman, G. Breck; Christensen, Robert K.; Sanford, Paula
• Is Part Of: Public performance & management review. Volume 43:Issue 6(2020)
• Page Start: 1318
• Page End: 1341
• Publication Date: 2020-11-01
• Subjects: Attitudes -- collaboration -- intergovernmental relations -- public education; Civil service -- Labor productivity -- Periodicals; Civil service -- Labor productivity -- United States -- Periodicals; Government productivity -- Periodicals; Government productivity -- United States -- Periodicals; Public administration -- Periodicals; Public administration -- United States -- Periodicals; Civil service -- Labor productivity; Government productivity; Public administration; United States; Periodicals; 351.05
• DOI: 10.1080/15309576.2020.1835677
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1530-9576

Abstract

Abstract: Collaboration researchers have identified participant attitudes as a key antecedent of effective collaboration. While different individuals with different backgrounds representing different organizations are likely to form different attitudes regarding collaborative arrangements, successful collaboration is predicated upon at least a minimum level of attitudinal convergence. Unfortunately, little theory exists to predict where and to what extent collaborative participants will experience diverging and converging attitudes. By exploring participant attitudes in a specific policy area—public education—we extend the extant evidence that participant attitudes toward collaboration can vary widely. We employed a mixed-methods survey ( N = 435) of local government and school district officials representing 182 local governments and 96 school districts, respectively, in the state of Georgia. Based on these data, we provide a descriptive study of the extent to which likely collaborators experience a convergence (or divergence) of attitudes across several dimensions: the felt pressures to collaborate, the perceived importance of collaboration, the most needed areas of collaboration, the easiest areas of collaboration, and the perceived barriers to collaboration. Based on the descriptive study, we raise several practical and scholarly implications, including the theoretical potential of proximity as a way to understand attitudinal convergence and divergence across potential collaborators.