Has the Study of Public Service Motivation Addressed the Issues That Motivated the Study?

Abstract

The study of Public Service Motivation (PSM) has achieved considerable academic momentum with increasingly subtle research appearing each year. It is now opportune to look back at decades of work to see whether the concerns that initiated this area of study have been addressed. This article uses seminal articles that have shaped the field to find three main topics of interest: a concern about the way that theories of public choice characterized human nature, an ambition to crystallize and measure long-held understandings about a public service ethos, and a wish to promote a practical basis for incentivizing staff in the public sector. The application of PSM to these goals is examined, with the conclusion that PSM studies have made little progress in addressing any of those concerns. The implications of that conclusion are briefly considered.

The role of public service motivation in performance. Examining the potentials and pitfalls through an institutional approach

“…Further, in distinguishing public service motivation from prosocial (Grant 2008), general service or user-oriented motivation, PSM is not about wanting to help one specific client or citizen, but rather society-at-large. As such, public service motivation can be found in any individual: it is not limited to those working in the public sector (Steen 2008;Prebble 2014). Regarding the work context, some public services are privately owned (nowadays, often public transport for example), sometimes private organizations are taken over by the government (as has happened with banks), and some private organizations aim for societal goals (social entrepreneurship).…”

“…In their seminal work on public service motivation, Perry and Wise (1990) proposed a (Perry et al 2010;Prebble 2014;Wright & Grant 2010). Moreover, such an instrumental approach may also have negative consequences when for instance gaining a competitive advantage through taking care of employees turns into exploiting employees to reach the organizational goals (Guest 1997;Van Veldhoven 2012).…”

“…As such, PSM can be seen as a contextual motivation for which there is a constant interaction with the institutional environment. This also implies that public service motivation is not a stable trait that some individuals have and others do not (Prebble 2014). Rather, it is a motivation that can change in strength, form and saliency relative to other motives during a person's lifetime.…”

“…Consequently, PSM has been viewed as an 'instrument' which public organizations can use to increase their performance (Steen & Rutgers 2011). However, drawing this conclusion may be somewhat hasty, as some studies have found no or only a partial relationship between PSM and performance (Alonso & Lewis 2001;Petrovsky & Ritz 2014;Ritz 2009) and questions have been raised regarding the assumed relationship between PSM and performance (Perry et al 2010;Prebble 2014;Wright & Grant 2010). Moreover, such an instrumental approach may also have negative consequences when for instance gaining a competitive advantage through taking care of employees turns into exploiting employees to reach the organizational goals (Guest 1997;Van Veldhoven 2012).…”

“…PSM is the central focus because it reflects the distinctiveness of working on public service and can be seen as a contextualized type of motivation. Moreover, it is this type of motivation that is seen as a potential advantage that public service providers can wield to enhance performance, as opposed to better benefits, control or pay-for-performance .In their seminal work on public service motivation, Perry and Wise (1990) proposed a (Perry et al 2010;Prebble 2014;Wright & Grant 2010). Moreover, such an instrumental approach may also have negative consequences when for instance gaining a competitive advantage through taking care of employees turns into exploiting employees to reach the organizational goals (Guest 1997;Van Veldhoven 2012).…”