Searching near and far? Search distance and performance below historical and social aspirations
Dados Bibliográficos
| ID | 22426041 |
|---|---|
| Autores | Catarina Antunes Mantas (0009-0003-7862-1894, Leiden University, autor correspondente), Joris Van Der Voet (0000-0002-3945-5972, Leiden University), Amandine Lerusse (0000-0001-8835-7247, Leiden University) |
| Ano | 2026 |
| Páginas | 1-28 |
| Data de publicação | 2026-06-21 |
| Peer Reviewed | Sim |
| Open Access | Sim |
| Tipo | ARTICLE |
| Periódico | Public Performance & Management Review (JOURNAL) |
| Identificadores do periódico | ISSN: 1530-9576 • E-ISSN: 1557-9271 |
| Editora | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/15309576.2026.2687574 |
| OpenAlex | W7165489590 |
| Idioma | EN |
| Referências citadas | 81 |
Performance management systems generate feedback intended to guide public managers toward performance improvement. A central but underexplored question is where public managers search for information to generate solutions when performance falls below aspiration levels. This study employs a three-dimensional conceptualization of information search, distinguishing a disciplinary, spatial, and temporal dimension, to examine how performance below historical and social aspiration levels affects decision-makers’ search distance. Drawing on learning theory, we propose that historical aspiration levels direct search locally through experiential learning, while social aspiration levels direct search distantly through vicarious learning. We test these hypotheses with a pre-registered between-subjects survey experiment among 691 managers in Belgian local governments, using a cycling safety scenario. Results reveal a consistent individual-level preference for local search across all experimental groups. This preference is most pronounced in the disciplinary dimension, indicating that public managers strongly favor discipline-congruent information sources. Performance below historical or social aspiration levels does not significantly alter search distance. These findings suggest that the link between performance feedback and search distance may be weaker in public sector contexts than behavioral theory anticipates. We discuss implications for performance management theory and practice, and outline avenues for future research on search behavior in public organizations.
Conceptualization · Experiential learning · Information seeking · Preference · Public sector · Social learning · Accounting and Organizational Management · E-Government and Public Services · Public Policy and Administration Research
Performance Management in the Public Sector
Organizational Learning from Performance Feedback
Models of Bounded Rationality
Beyond local search
Recombinant Uncertainty in Technological Search
Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning
The Blame Game
Relational Ties and Network Structure
Performance feedback, blame avoidance, and data manipulation in the public sector
Boundary-spanning in public value co-creation through the lens of multilevel governance
Tie Dissolution in Market Networks
Learning from Local Government Research Partnerships in a Fragmented Political Setting
How Do Public Managers Learn from Performance Information? Experimental Evidence on Problem Focus, Innovative Search, and Change
Decision‐Makers ’ Generation of Policy Solutions amidst Negative Performance
Double standards? How historical and political aspiration levels guide managerial performance information use
How local governments prioritize multiple conflicting goals
When bureaucratic expertise comes under attack
Learning From Performance Feedback
Goal Ambiguity and Organizational Performance in U.S. Federal Agencies
Search in Response to Negative Performance Feedback
Performance Management Meets Red Tape
When do bureaucrats respond to external demands? A theoretical framework and empirical test of bureaucratic responsiveness
How Public Managers Use Information
Beyond the Limits of Survey Experiments
Analyzing Causal Mechanisms in Survey Experiments
Who Are Your Neighbors? The Role of Ideology and Decline of Geographic Proximity in the Diffusion of Policy Innovations
Performance Gaps and Managerial Decisions
Successful Problem Solvers? Managerial Performance Information Use to Improve Low Organizational Performance
How Do Politicians Attribute Bureaucratic Responsibility for Performance? Negativity Bias and Interest Group Advocacy
A Behavioral Model of Public Organizations
Performance Information, Blame Avoidance, and Politicians' Attitudes to Spending and Reform
Compared to What? How Social and Historical Reference Points Affect Citizens’ Performance Evaluations
Learning from Performance Information
How Do Elected Officials Evaluate Performance? Goal Preferences, Governance Preferences, and the Process of Goal Reprioritization
Performance information and issue prioritization by political and managerial decision-makers
How Leaders Respond to Diversity
The politics of policy diffusion
| Velocidade de citação | historical |
|---|---|
| Altamente citado | Não |