Foundations of Relating: Theory and Evidence on the Formation of Street-Level Bureaucrats' Workplace Networks.

Despite the importance of peers in forming role expectations, fostering group identity, and facilitating job learning, limited theory and empirical evidence exist on the antecedents of street-level peer relationships. To address this gap, the authors draw on social capital and social exchange theori...

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Published in:Public Administration Review Vol. 77; no. 6; pp. 829 - 840
Main Authors: Nisar, Muhammad Azfar, Maroulis, Spiro
Format: Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Nov/Dec2017
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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        atl: Foundations of Relating: Theory and Evidence on the Formation of Street-Level Bureaucrats' Workplace Networks.
      aug:
        au:
          Nisar, Muhammad Azfar
          Maroulis, Spiro
        affil:
          Lahore University of Management Sciences
          Arizona State University
      su:
        Social networks
        Peer relations
        Social capital
        Social exchange
        Teachers
        Educational change
        Civil service
        Work experience (Employment)
      sug:
        subj:
          Social networks
          Peer relations
          Social capital
          Social exchange
          Teachers
          Educational change
          Civil service
          Other General Government Support
          Other Individual and Family Services
          Work experience (Employment)
      ab: Despite the importance of peers in forming role expectations, fostering group identity, and facilitating job learning, limited theory and empirical evidence exist on the antecedents of street-level peer relationships. To address this gap, the authors draw on social capital and social exchange theories to develop hypotheses about the micro-social foundations of street-level bureaucrats' peer selection. The hypotheses are tested using a rich data set from an intraorganizational network of teachers in a large urban school implementing a reform that strongly promoted frontline innovation. Both structural and instrumental considerations, such as seeking peers possessing characteristics and resources valued by the reform, figure prominently in the work relations of street-level bureaucrats. These results imply that the introduction of improvement initiatives requiring frontline participation, in addition to altering work practices, may also alter social networks within the frontline of an organization in a manner that favors some frontline workers over others.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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