Are individuals with high levels of public service motivation satisfied in MPA degree programs?

Abstract

Many scholars have suggested that public service motivation (PSM) is a defining characteristic of public and non-profit employees. However, interest and motivation alone are not the sole determinates of success in any organization. Employees must also possess the knowledge and skills that will help them accomplish the difficult tasks that arise in their chosen occupation. This study explored the relationship that PSM has to student satisfaction in MPA programs, taking into consideration program climate and number of years of government experience. The findings confirmed that while PSM is related to student satisfaction, this relationship was completely mediated by program climate. The implications of the study are discussed, in particular in terms of the contributions that an environment of support and PSM make on the attitudes of students in MPA programs.

The effects of continuing public sector management education: a systematic literature review

“…Examples of the latter are continuing public sector management education like Master of Public Governance (MPG), Master of Public Management (MPM) and Master of Public Administration (MPA). There are several studies examining and comparing the curricula of the different types of management education (Hur and Hackbart, 2009; Denison and Kim, 2019; Infeld and Adams, 2011), studies that discuss how to improve management education to stay tuned to the challenges of practical public administration (Denhardt, 2001; Greenwood and Eggins, 1995), studies that analyze and discuss student satisfaction with management education (Powell, 2007; Bright, 2017), as well as studies that explore teaching and learning principles in public administration and public management education (Day and Glick, 2000; Kuye, 2005). Few studies assess the effect, impact, outcome or result of participating in formal management education.…”