Perceptions of Public Servants in the US: Stereotypes, Trends, and Implications

• In Event: The Public Workforce: Perceptions, Mobility, and Service Disparities

Abstract

Worldwide, government workers are often portrayed as lazy, slow, and inefficient – stereotypes exacerbated by recent rhetoric in the US. These negative stereotypes of public servants threaten recruitment efforts and public service delivery at a time when government agencies struggle to attract and retain new talent while public trust in government is near all-time lows. A growing body of literature documents how stereotypes differ across cultural and institutional contexts, and explores both their drivers and effects. Yet, research on perceptions of public servants in the US is relatively limited, and there is little evidence on how stereotypes relate to policy-relevant outcomes including motivation to join public service or engage with government. 

Using a series of ongoing, quarterly nationally representative surveys and a set of related survey experiments, we measure stereotypes of public sector employees across four dimensions – warmth, competence, integrity, and innovation – as well as respondents’ views of government, impressions of public sector jobs, interest in public sector careers, and other policy preferences. Through these surveys we address three sets of key questions: (1) what is the state of stereotypes about government workers in the US, and how are they shaped by the framing of workers as well as workers' and respondents' characteristics? (2) how are stereotypes linked to outcomes including interest in public sector employment, policy preferences, and beliefs about government? (3) what strategies shift stereotypes? 

First, preliminary results indicate that while most respondents hold broadly favorable views of public sector workers, these ratings consistently lag behind those of private sector workers. Framing also substantially affects these stereotypes: labeling employees as “government employees” or “bureaucrats” significantly reduces respondents’ ratings of their warmth, competence, integrity, and innovation compared to labeling them as “public servants”. Respondents associate each of these framings with different occupations and characteristics as well – people are more likely to associate “public servants” with law enforcement or firefighters, while “bureaucrats” are associated with elected officials and IRS employees. Similarly, stereotypes vary widely across specific occupational groups, with firefighters and librarians consistently rated more favorably and police officers and ICE agents more negatively. Second, we find that various respondent characteristics – including party identity, experience working in the public sector, and civic engagement – significantly predict differences in stereotypes. 

Third, we find that stereotypes of public sector employees are consistent and significant predictors of policy-relevant beliefs. Preliminary data show that between our first two quarterly surveys, reported interest in public sector careers fell by 5 percentage points –  underscoring the urgency of understanding what drives these trends. Notably, more favorable views of public servants – especially their integrity – strongly predict interest in public sector careers and beliefs about government efficiency, even after accounting for broader trust in government and beliefs about public sector jobs. These findings thus have important implications for practitioners and policymakers alike as they seek to rebuild trust in government and strengthen the public sector workforce, pointing towards potential policy strategies that may shift these narratives at a critical moment.

Author

• Alec R Wall, Harvard University
  Presenting Author