Study shows that respect for norms and empathy favor public policies

Street-level bureaucrats are public servants who are in direct contact with people and help implement public policies, such as police officers and health workers. According to federal highway police officers, compliance with rules and procedures and interaction with citizens are factors associated with better operational performance – related to workers – and institutional performance – related to the organization as a whole – improving the capacity of action of these professionals.

The analysis is in a study published in the "Journal of Public Administration" by Gabriela Lotta, a researcher at the São Paulo School of Business Administration (FGV EAESP), in partnership with authors from the University of Brasília (UnB). To investigate the factors that influence the performance of street-level bureaucrats in the execution and implementation of public policies, they applied a questionnaire to 426 federal highway police officers in action, including low, middle, and high-ranking bureaucrats. The data were collected in 2021 and analyzed using quantitative techniques.

According to the study, acting in accordance with the rules is a more determining factor for the performance of these agents in implementing public policies than the freedom to make decisions. Despite this, autonomy – or discretion – remains a positive characteristic for the performance of these professionals.

Another relevant aspect is the proximity to the public. The relationship with citizens helps professionals to understand their needs, leading to a better performance of the police. Empathy with the population is also more significant for the performance of agents than autonomy in the execution of activities.

The study also shows that, between the upper levels of the organization and the enforcement agents, there are divergences on how public policies should be applied. For organizations, for example, freedom of action is not positively associated with the performance of police officers, only compliance with the rules and the relationship with the public. Agents, in turn, positively associate their performance with these three aspects.