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Linking Jamaica's public service motivations and ethical climate
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Linking Jamaica's public service motivations and ethical climate

K. Moloney and H-Y Chu
The American Review of Public Administration, Vol.46(4), pp.436-458
2016
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Abstract

Using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), we create a valid 15-item public service motivation (PSM) construct for Jamaica. We find high PSM among surveyed Jamaican civil servants and students. While our article supports the potentially universal nature of PSM, Jamaica is a less developed and less transparent country than the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) studies that dominate PSM scholarship. Survey respondents perceive corrupt and unethical behaviors among Jamaica's civil servants, politicians, and with selected state services. We use historical-institutionalism to explain the coexistence of high PSM in an unfavorable ethical climate. Institutional and cultural histories explain why substantive PSM values are not instrumentally implemented. Respondents feared job loss or lost promotions if they tell on colleagues who act inappropriately. The presence of monitoring institutions has not guaranteed effectiveness. An "informer culture" and societal distrust limit prosocial behaviors. The intertwining of institutional weaknesses and an informer culture limit PSM value enactment in Jamaica.

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Citation topics
6 Social Sciences
6.27 Political Science
6.27.489 Public Administration
Web Of Science research areas
Public Administration
ESI research areas
Social Sciences, general
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