This study investigates the factors that influence citizens trust in public leaders [i.e. presidents, members of parliament (MPs) and local government leaders (LGs)] in 34…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the factors that influence citizens trust in public leaders [i.e. presidents, members of parliament (MPs) and local government leaders (LGs)] in 34 countries in Africa between 2019 and 2021.
Design/methodology/approach
Individual-level data with a sample size of 48,084 was obtained from the Afro-Barometer round 8 survey only and analyzed using multivariate binary logistic regression.
Findings
Several important and intriguing observations were made from this analysis: (1) the performance of public leaders influences citizens trust in their leaders; (2) the perceived corruption of public leaders and civil servants and the level of corruption influence citizens trust in public leaders; (3) perceived neighborhood problems (i.e. fear of violence, fear of terrorism and service delivery) influence citizens trust in their public leaders and (4) the socio-demographic characteristics of citizens (i.e. age, religion, education, location, employment and political party affiliation) influence citizens trust in their public leaders.
Originality/value
This study is exceptional in two ways: (1) it examines and compares citizens trust in public leaders across different levels, i.e. presidents, MPs and LGs in Africa and (2) it examines and compares the factors influencing citizens trust in public leaders in Africa comparatively.
This study was designed to assess the predictors of citizens' trust in public leaders in Ghana. Specifically, it assesses the effect of eight trust variables—competence/ability…
Abstract
Purpose
This study was designed to assess the predictors of citizens' trust in public leaders in Ghana. Specifically, it assesses the effect of eight trust variables—competence/ability, integrity, communication, benevolence, political/quality of governance, rational/economic, risk-taking and socio-demographic characteristics—on citizens' trust in public leaders—the president, members of parliament (MPs) and metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs)—in Ghana from 2016 to 2018.
Design/methodology/approach
Summary statistics, bivariate correlation and binary logistic regression were employed to analyze 2,400 responses of Ghanaians obtained from the Afro-Barometer round seven surveys on Ghana (2016–2018).
Findings
The results reveal that competence/ability, that is to say, the performance of the president, MPs and MMDCEs, influence citizens' trust in these leaders. Furthermore, communication, benevolence, rationality, risk-taking and socio-demographic variables were significant predictors of citizens' trust in the president. Likewise, competence/ability, communication, politics, benevolence and socio-demographic variables were predictors of citizens' trust in MPs. Additionally, competence/ability, communication, integrity, politics, benevolence and socio-demographic variables influence citizens' trust in MMDCEs. In short, the rationality and risk-taking variables only influence trust in the president, while the political variables influence trust in MPs and MMDCEs. However, integrity influences trust in MMDCEs. Future studies can investigate the factors that account for these differences to augment the current literature.
Originality/value
This article is unique because it examines and compares citizens' trust in three categories of public leaders—the president, MPs and MMDCEs—in Ghana using nationally representative data.
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Michael K. Dzordzormenyoh, Claudia Dzordzormenyoh and Jerry Dogbey-Gakpetor
The COVID-19 pandemic provides researchers and practitioners with an opportunity to examine the effect of emergency policing on public trust in the police and augment our…
Abstract
Purpose
The COVID-19 pandemic provides researchers and practitioners with an opportunity to examine the effect of emergency policing on public trust in the police and augment our understanding. Therefore, the primary purpose of this study was to examine the effect of police enforcement of COVID-19 health measures on public trust in the police in Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach
A multivariate binary logistic regression was utilized to assess the effect of police enforcement of COVID-19 health measures on public trust in the police in Ghana using national representative data.
Findings
Our analysis suggests that emergency policing positively influences public trust in the police in Ghana. Additionally, we observed that police-related issues such as corruption and professionalism, as well as demographic factors of the public, influence trust in the police. These observations are helpful for emergency policing and policy development in Ghana.
Originality/value
This study is unique because it uses national representative data to assess the effect of police enforcement of COVID-19 health measures on public trust in the police in Ghana. Furthermore, this study is among the first or among the few from Ghana and the sub-region to examine the nexus between health emergencies and policing.
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This study investigates the impact of residential type and neighborhood security on public trust in the police in Ghana, while controlling for demographic factors and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the impact of residential type and neighborhood security on public trust in the police in Ghana, while controlling for demographic factors and police-related variables.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected during the ninth round of the Afro-Barometer survey conducted in Ghana between 2019 and 2021 with a sample size of 2,369 participants. The study employed binary logistic regression analysis to examine the relationship between the independent variables (residential type and neighborhood security) and the dependent variable (trust in the police).
Findings
The results indicate that living in traditional housing is associated with lower levels of trust in the police compared with other residential types. Unexpectedly, neighborhood security did not emerge as a statistically significant predictor of police trust. However, police corruption and the use of force were negatively associated with trust, whereas police professionalism positively predicted trust. Interestingly, unnecessary police stops were positively associated with trust, possibly reflecting a complex relationship between police visibility and public perceptions. This study also revealed ethnic and regional variations in police trust, highlighting the need for culturally sensitive policing approaches.
Originality/value
This study stands out in three key aspects. First, it represents one of the first attempts to examine how residential type and neighborhood security influence public trust in law enforcement agencies in Ghana. Second, this study is among the few to investigate the relationship between neighborhood conditions and trust in police using a sample that is representative of the entire nation. Finally, these findings contribute to the understanding of the multifaceted nature of public trust in the police within the Ghanaian context and offer insights for policymakers and law enforcement agencies to enhance police-community relations.
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Matthew R. Fairholm, Michael K. Dzordzormenyoh and Godlove A. Binda
Trust and culture are common themes in leadership literature and research. The purpose of this paper is it to describe an emergent model of trust-culture leadership from the…
Abstract
Purpose
Trust and culture are common themes in leadership literature and research. The purpose of this paper is it to describe an emergent model of trust-culture leadership from the comments of local government managers in the USA. The environment of local government requires a level of trust between government and citizens. Comments from local government managers suggest trust is also a component of leading public organizations. The elements of the model culled from practical insights serve to both verify and elucidate much of what is found in leadership theory in a local government context.
Design/methodology/approach
This research is based on qualitative interviews of practicing local government managers coupled with an analysis of essays on leadership also written by local government managers.
Findings
The research indicates eight elements of a model divided into three categories (descriptions of leadership in practice, tools and behaviors, and approaches to followers) that help to both describe and perhaps prescribe the work of trust-culture leadership in a local government context.
Originality/value
While some of what is summarized below is found in leadership literature already, the fact that these elements of leadership are intuitive to local government managers and internalized in their practice is significant. Linking both trust and culture in leadership literature is limited, and linking them both to the practical insights of public managers is even more unique. The findings verify that public leaders at the local level actually engage in leadership of a particular sort, that of trust-culture leadership. It highlights the priority of trust in local government administration. The elements of the model serve to offer public managers specific things to focus on to promote trust-culture leadership and suggest to public leadership scholars specific avenues for further investigation.
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This paper utilizes Svara's facilitative leadership model to examine local government council/board effectiveness in Michigan, United States.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper utilizes Svara's facilitative leadership model to examine local government council/board effectiveness in Michigan, United States.
Design/methodology/approach
This study performs a binary logistic regression to assess the influence of four independent variables–consensus building, cooperative relationship, clarity of responsibility and existence of factions/partisanship on five measures of council/board effectiveness (long-term goal setting, administrative, financial, addressing citizen expectations and overall performance), while controlling for other variables.
Findings
Overall, the findings of this study have serious theoretical and practical implications. Specifically, the findings revealed that cooperative relationships, clarity of responsibility, discussion of public issues and partnership influence council/board effectiveness. The findings further support Svara's (2003) model on facilitative leadership and the model's usefulness in understanding local government leadership, i.e. council/board leadership effectiveness.
Research limitations/implications
First, survey data contains desirability bias which can affect the results presented in this study. Second, the data does not include socio-demographic variables of the respondents.
Originality/value
The study is original because it utilizes a data set that is not commonly used in understanding local government council/board effectiveness. Furthermore, the study also shows the usefulness of Svara's facilitative leadership in local government.
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This article describes what department directors and chiefs of staff reported when asked about the competencies they need to be effective in addressing on-the-job challenges. The…
Abstract
Purpose
This article describes what department directors and chiefs of staff reported when asked about the competencies they need to be effective in addressing on-the-job challenges. The study analyzed the generated data in two different ways to both understand what participants said in their own terms and to determine whether there is a fit between participants’ responses and facilitative leadership theory.
Design/methodology/approach
Twenty-four semi-structured interviews were conducted with five department directors and seven chiefs of staff in a US city that had a mayor-council form of government. Responses were analyzed in two ways. Initially, coding categories were developed inductively in an effort to employ what anthropologists characterize as an emic or insider perspective. Then the data were recoded from an etic perspective using the theory of facilitative leadership as a conceptual framework.
Findings
Although participants identified a wide variety of competencies, all participants emphasized the importance of working collaboratively with others, including the members of their teams, the elected official they worked with (and for) and constituents.
Originality/value
While most studies of facilitative leadership have focused on mayors and city managers, i.e. those at the top of the city administration hierarchy, this study’s focus is on middle managers who are not necessarily thought of as leaders but who must in fact, exercise leadership at least at times. Another relatively unique feature of this paper is its focus on a city that employs a mayor-council form of governance, a type of governance structure that has been underdiscussed in the literature to date.