1 Performance Regime Influence on the Red Tape Perceptions of Front Line Staff

This article examines whether performance management affects the red tape perceptions of front line staff. This is an important issue, as there are widespread claims that performance management based on external goal setting... [ view full abstract ]

This article examines whether performance management affects the red tape perceptions of front line staff. This is an important issue, as there are widespread claims that performance management based on external goal setting and incentives produce perceptions of red tape among public sector frontline staff. Our approach is to develop a theoretical argument for the relationship that we examine in a quasi-experimental reform setting with Danish hospital staff. The main theoretical result is the proposition – derived from theory on performance regimes and the psychological origins of red tape perceptions – that performance regimes focused on internal learning decrease red tape perceptions compared to performance regimes focused on external incentives. Empirically, there is no support for the proposition when regimes are conceptualized and examined with their formal-institutional setup, but some support when conceptualized and examined with the practices of performance management. The article matters because it provides a theorization of the influence of performance management on red tape perceptions as well as an empirical examination of this novel to the literature.