Published In
Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-9-2009
Subjects
Social Work education, Pedagogy
Abstract
Examining the linkage between service provision and client outcomes is important in performance-based human service environments. Since most performance initiatives reward agencies for improving client outcomes rather than providing specific services, managers may have incentives to streamline workers’ efforts and reduce resources devoted to services considered nonessential. This article uses data from a performance-based child welfare initiative to examine the relationship between child permanency outcomes, the services provided by caseworkers, and the environment surrounding frontline service provision. Findings indicate that greater service efforts are required to reunify children with parents than to reach other outcomes, including adoption and placement with relatives. They also indicate that formal organizational responses to performance environments affect client outcomes partially through the services provided by frontline workers. These findings suggest that managers should attend to the interplay between the organizational environment, service technology, and client outcomes when designing performance-based systems in the human service sector.
Rights
Copyright (c) 2009 The Authors
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Locate the Document
DOI
10.1093/jopart/mup037
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/37641
Citation Details
McBeath, B., & Meezan, W. (2010). Governance in motion: Service provision and child welfare outcomes in a performance-based, managed care contracting environment. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 20(suppl_1), i101-i123.