The impact of the South Korean Public Institution Management Evaluation System on the accountability of South Korean public institutions

Jin, Minkyu (2023). The impact of the South Korean Public Institution Management Evaluation System on the accountability of South Korean public institutions. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

This thesis examines the effectiveness of performance management systems in strengthening accountability in the public sector. Public accountability can serve as a tool to induce public organisations to improve performance by providing rewards and sanctions related to the effects of their performance. Therefore, many countries have endeavoured to design and implement performance management systems to improve public accountability according to the international guidelines on performance management systems provided by the OECD. This study adopts a case study design using the South Korean Public Institution Management Evaluation System (PIMES) because the PIMES is designed in accordance with the international guidelines. The study examines the effectiveness of PIMES in incentivising public institutions to improve accountability and performance and mitigating the strategic behaviour of public institutions. A mixed methods research is employed in this study. A quantitative analysis using regression models is conducted with the PIMES data for 2014-2019. The quantitative analysis finds that the PIMES leads the public institutions to improve social accountability, but does not impact managerial accountability. It also finds citizens’ role in improving quality of public services through performance management systems. A qualitative analysis drawing on 42 semi-structured interviews and documents suggests that non-financial incentive schemes can be more effective for improving the accountability of public organisations than financial incentive schemes. As for strategic behaviour and gaming, the quantitative and qualitative data provide the finding that the strategic behaviour of public institutions occurs frequently in the PIMES evaluation process. This thesis contributes to a new theoretical understanding of ratchet effects and threshold effects by identifying that ‘irrelevant ratchet effects’ and ‘individual threshold effects’ exist due to a target-setting method in performance management systems.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):