The Value of Mission Statements in Public Agencies

Bibliographic Data

ID6294994
AuthorsJonathan A Wei (0000-0002-5849-7334, University of Michigan), J A Weiss, Sandy Kristin Piderit (Case Western Reserve University), K Piderit
Year1999
Volume9
Issue2
Pages193-224
Publication date1999-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Public Administration Research and Theory (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1053-1858 • E-ISSN: 1477-9803
PublisherOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1093/oxfordjournals.jpart.a024408
OpenAlexW2083162225
LanguageEN
Citations received45
References cited8

Many public management scholars have argued that defining a strong mission for public agencies is a useful step toward performance improvement. Public managers and elected officials have begun widespread adoption of formal mission statements to do just that. However, remarkably little empirical research has examined the case for or against mission statements. We looked at the mission statements of 304 public schools, with data about school characteristics and performance before and after the adoption of the mission statement. We asked whether missions vary across agencies doing the same work, whether some mission statements have an impact on performance, and whether the impact is positive or negative. Although skeptics doubt that talking about organizational mission is constructive, our results suggest that missions do vary substantially and that the choices that managers make in the content and rhetorical style of their mission statements can have consequences that facilitate or impair subsequent performance

Business · Constructive · Mission statement · Political science · Process (computing · Public relations · Public value · Rhetorical question · Value (mathematics · Work (physics · Computer Science · Engineering · Organizational Leadership and Management Strategies · Organizational Strategy and Culture · Public Administration