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Red tape studies typically focus on burdensome rules that have negative effects on organizations, as perceived by managers. The one‐item general red tape scale is representative of this approach. However, scholars have called for improved measures that address the scale's shortcomings. This article introduces a new measurement scale that features (1) red tape as a two‐dimensional construct that includes compliance burden and lack of functionality and (2) a job‐centered approach that measures red tape as experienced by employees in their jobs rather than more generally in the organization. A set of survey questions derived from interviews with government employees was validated using data from 1,203 government employees. The findings indicate that the two‐dimensional job‐centered red tape scale is reliable and valid. The authors conclude that this measure can improve research and be used by managers for a “quick scan” to detect the location and severity of red tape.

A core proposition of public service motivation (PSM) theory is that PSM is positively related to individual performance. Some studies, however, suggest that this relationship is mediated by person-job or person-organization fit. This study aims to further clarify the relationship between PSM and performance by, first, studying the mediation role of both person-job and person-organization fits and, second, by investigating this mediation for both in-role and extra-role behavior. Whereas in-role behavior is aimed at the individual task, extra-role is aimed at helping colleagues. This difference may matter for the role of PSM and fit. To this end, we conducted structural equation modeling with bootstrapping on self-reported survey data from public employees (n = 1,031). The analysis showed that person-job, but not person-organization fit, fully mediated the relationship between PSM and in-role behavior. The relationship with extra-role behavior was not mediated. The PSMperformance relationship may thus be more complex than previously envisioned, as both type of performance and personjob fit matter.

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Empirical studies have found a positive relationship between public service motivation (PSM) and individual performance. However, it is unclear what public service motivated employees are doing in terms of behavior that makes them perform. Moreover, it is uncertain whether PSM inspires similar behaviors among employees in different contexts. Conceptualizing performance as a multidimensional construct, this study investigates the relationship between PSM and self-reported output, service outcome, responsiveness, and democratic outcome behaviors. Using structural equation modeling on survey data from 459 employees in people-changing (service production, aimed at changing the user) and 461 employees in people-processing (service regulation, categorizing, and processing users) organizations, the results show that PSM is related to all performance-related behaviors in the people-changing group, but neither to output nor responsiveness in the people-processing group. PSM’s relationship to behavior may thus differ between contexts.

Decades of research on red tape have still to provide final answers as to whether red tape reduces performance. This may be due to not distinguishing the different dimensions that public service performance consists of. Shifting the focus to rules and their characteristics, this study analyses how the degree of compliance burden and lack of functionality of rules relates to overall and dimensional public performance. Building upon the argument that red tape reduces resources and motivation and by doing so influences performance, hypotheses are put forward regarding the relationship to performance. Using red tape reports from employees in 49 work units and performance rated by the supervisor, this study shows that performance is at its lowest when the rules have a high compliance burden and lack functionality. Moreover, the dimensional analyses show that compliance burden may be most detrimental for output, whereas lack of functionality reduces responsiveness and democratic outcomes.

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How frontline employees cope with perceived work pressure may be of direct influence on policy outcomes. This study contributes to the street‐level bureaucracy literature in several ways. First, we study both passive client‐oriented and active system‐oriented coping. Second, we analyse how these coping behaviours relate to work pressure and work autonomy. Finally, this article analyses whether these relationships are conditioned by the performance regime. Using a unique set‐up of hospital employees (n = 979) working in external and internal performance regimes, we find a higher level of system‐oriented active coping than client‐oriented passive coping. Moreover, we find that autonomy matters for system‐oriented coping and work pressure for client‐oriented coping, and that these relationships are context‐dependent.