Are local public services better delivered in more autonomous regions? Evidence from European regions using a dose‐response approach

Abstract

Does regional autonomy lead to better local public services? We investigate this issue using measures of public service performance and autonomy at the region level in 171 European regions. We introduce a novel dose-response approach which identifies the pattern of the effect of regional autonomy on the performance of public services. The relationship between the level of regional autonomy and the provision of local public services exhibits a u-shape: both low and high autonomy lead to better local public services. This speaks against the presence of one optimal level of autonomy and policy recommendations based on the view that more decentralisation is always desirable. It shows that different institutional settings can be economically viable and efficient. JEL classification: P48, R1, R5, H7

Direct and non‐linear innovation effects of demographic shifts

“…government policy or external shock) on outcome (e.g. citizen attitudes or behaviour) (Filippetti & Cerulli, 2018). We conduct analysis using the following procedure.…”

“…When a cause of treatment takes a continuous form, DRF models (Adormo, Bernini, & Pellegrini, 2007; Bia & Mattei, 2008; Cerulli, 2015; Guardabascio & Ventura, 2013; Hirano & Imbens, 2004) are well suited to socio‐economic contexts and relatively advantageous compared to traditional regression models (Filippetti & Cerulli, 2018). In considering a policy program or a program evaluation in a socio‐economic context, it is important to analyse not only whether treatment is received by a certain group but also the treatment intensity or size.…”

“…The main relative advantage of DRF models is they allow researchers to graphically identify the entire pattern or distribution of the effects of treatments by estimating effects (response) in the form of a function defined along the values taken by the treatment (dose) variable (Cerulli, 2015; Filippetti & Cerulli, 2018). We follow Cerulli's (2015) DRF model, which does not require the full normality assumption that Hirano and Imbens (2004) and Bia and Matttei (2008) assume.…”

Do high‐quality local institutions shape labour productivity in Western European manufacturing firms?

“…The choice of focusing on these seven countries is driven by two main reasons. First, concentrating on developed west European nation‐states guarantees a certain degree of similarity among countries—and their regions—with respect to their more recent historical, political, and institutional paths (Filippetti & Cerulli, ; Ketterer & Rodríguez‐Pose, ). This is particularly relevant, as the analysis focuses on the role of regional institutions on firms' performance.…”

Does Diversity Undermine the Welfare State? Evidence from the Provision of Local Public Services in European Regions

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