The Role of Interorganizational Competition in Motivating Street-Level Bureaucrats to Adopt Policy Entrepreneurship Strategies: The Case of Israeli Rabbis in Government Hospitals

• DOI: 10.1177/0275074020982692
• Date: 01 February 2021
• Published date: 01 February 2021
• Author: Niva Golan-Nadir
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0275074020982692

American Review of Public Administration

2021, Vol. 51(2) 107 –120

© The Author(s) 2020

Article reuse guidelines:

sagepub.com/journals-permissions

DOI: 10.1177/0275074020982692

journals.sagepub.com/home/arp

Article

Introduction

It is traditionally argued that in situations in which costs are

centralized but benefits are decentralized, the politics of

entrepreneurship is needed (Wilson, 1985). In the realm of

public policy, we would expect policy entrepreneurship to be

led by politicians and/or statesmen, elite groups, or civil

society. Yet, in some instances, the term “policy entrepre-

neurs” may refer exclusively to those individuals who change

the direction of policies while holding bureaucratic positions

(Brouwer & Huitema, 2018), as street-level bureaucrats.

Street-level bureaucrats are frontline workers who inter-

act daily with citizens, providing public goods and services

while enforcing and implementing dictated policies and reg-

ulations. The implementation literature regards them as piv-

otal players in the making of public policy (Brodkin, 2011;

Evans & Harris, 2004; Gofen, 2013; Hupe & Hill, 2015;

Lipsky, 1980/2010; Maynard-Moody & Musheno, 2003;

Maynard-Moody & Portillo, 2010; Thomann, 2015).

As the implementers of policy, they enjoy state-given

monopoly to implement official policy and are granted the

latitude to do so using substantial discretion. Bureaucratic

discretion conveys the idea of a public agency acting with

considerable latitude in implementing broad policy mandates

of a legislative body (Bryner, 1987). It is considered a crucial

element for how they perform their duties while matching

the requirements of policy to the demands of the field

(Tummers & Bekkers, 2014). Indeed, although formal policy

terms and managerial strategies surely matter, they cannot

determine entirely what happens on the frontlines of policy

delivery (Brodkin, 2011), where unelected bureaucrats regu-

larly influence the implementation of public policies (Teske

& Schneider, 1994).

It is further argued that street-level bureaucrats may influ-

ence the design of public policy by leveraging resources to

secure favored policy outcomes at the micro level, shaping

policy through their daily choices (Lipsky, 1980/2010;

Maynard-Moody & Musheno, 2003; Riccucci, 2005). They

are often referred to de facto policymakers in the sense that

they informally construct or reconstruct their organizations’

policies, thereby directly influencing the lives of many

people (Brodkin, 1990; Hill & Hupe, 2014). More recently,

982692ARPXXX10.1177/0275074020982692The American Review of Public AdministrationGolan-Nadir

research-article2020

1The Open University of Israel, Ra’anana, Israel

Corresponding Author:

Niva Golan-Nadir, The Open University of Israel, Ra’anana 43107, Israel.

Email: nivagolan@hotmail.com

The Role of Interorganizational Competition

in Motivating Street-Level Bureaucrats to

Adopt Policy Entrepreneurship Strategies:

The Case of Israeli Rabbis in Government

Hospitals

Niva Golan-Nadir1

Abstract

What is the role of interorganizational competition in motivating street-level bureaucrats to adopt policy entrepreneurship

strategies? What are their main goals in adopting such strategies? We argue that in the wake of New Public Management,

interorganizational competition encourages street-level bureaucrats to adopt policy entrepreneurship strategies. We

further suggest that three competition-oriented elements motivate entrepreneurial initiatives at the street level: (a)

personal, (b) organizational (interorganizational and intraorganizational), and (c) cultural demographic. In addition, we

argue that the goal of street-level bureaucrats as policy entrepreneurs is to influence public policy results for their own

benefit. They do so because they and their organizations are rewarded financially as their clients’ satisfaction with the

services provided increases. Using in-depth interviews, online questionnaires, and textual analysis, we test these claims by

analyzing the case of Israeli rabbis in government hospitals. We demonstrate how their goal in entrepreneurship is mainly

to attract patients to their organization.

Keywords

street-level bureaucrats, policy entrepreneurship, new public management, religion, Israel