Policy mechanisms for interlocal service delivery: management perspectives in the USA and Norway
International Journal of Public Sector Management
ISSN: 0951-3558
Article publication date: 8 January 2024
Issue publication date: 29 February 2024
Abstract
Purpose
This study comparatively examines the collaborative policy mechanisms for interlocal cooperation (ILC) utilized by municipal managers in Nebraska, USA, and Norway. The research addresses differences in ILC, factors of national setting and implications for ILC management in public service delivery.
Design/methodology/approach
Over a seven-year period, the researchers collected data from 16 communities in the two countries to observe perceptions and usages of ILC. Using a policy tools theoretical framework, the authors apply a typology of collaborative mechanisms for comparative analysis.
Findings
The findings suggest that institutional orientations in the USA and Norwegian systems of government affect managerial approaches to collaborative service delivery, namely the operationalization of local governments within federal and unitary structures may influence perceptions toward the formality and specificity of ILC policy mechanisms.
Originality/value
This study offers further understanding of ILC mechanisms for public sector management. Theoretical and practical implications of ILC in a comparative international context of governmental systems for collaboration are explored.
Keywords
Citation
Janousek, C.L., Torjesen, D.O. and Blair, R. (2024), "Policy mechanisms for interlocal service delivery: management perspectives in the USA and Norway", International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 37 No. 2, pp. 215-231. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPSM-03-2023-0092
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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