Abstract
Often portrayed as policymakers rather than policytakers, street-level bureaucrats play a key role in policy implementation. It is now well accepted that the implementation actions of street-level workers frequently result in outcomes that differ from those expected from formal policy. Although the adaptation of rules among street-level bureaucrats is well documented, its influence has been relatively understudied. Furthermore, the conceptualization of street-level divergence is relatively ambiguous. To explore the conditions under which divergence may contribute to a policy change, this study suggests a more-nuanced portrayal of street-level divergence, by referring to three analytical dimensions, namely, motivation, transparency, and collectivity. Data draw on street-level actions that are considered inconsistent with formal policy both among policy principals and among street-level workers, in three different policy sectors: education, health, and welfare. Findings suggest that transparent, collective, and other-serving divergence tends to trigger a policy change. A better understanding of the reciprocal relationships between street-level divergence and policy change may contribute to the coordination of the efforts of different governmental tiers as regards policymaking and the design of policy implementation.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 473-493 |
Number of pages | 21 |
Journal | Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory |
Volume | 24 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Apr 2014 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was supported by the Israel Science Foundation (grant no. 1295/12).