Citizens' perceptions of the legitimacy of independent agencies: The effects of expertise‐based and reputation‐sourced authority.

Legitimacy is a central concern for independent agencies tasked with shaping policies. While expertise‐based and reputation‐sourced authority bases are assumed to be relevant for agency legitimacy, their individual and joint effects on citizens' perceptions lack comprehensive examination. To address...

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Publicado en:Public Administration Review Vol. 85; no. 5; pp. 1495 - 1512
Autores principales: Rimkutė, Dovilė, Mazepus, Honorata
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Wiley-Blackwell Sep/Oct2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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        atl: Citizens' perceptions of the legitimacy of independent agencies: The effects of expertise‐based and reputation‐sourced authority.
      aug:
        au:
          Rimkutė, Dovilė
          Mazepus, Honorata
        affil:
          Leiden University, The Hague, The Netherlands
          University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
      su:
        European Food Safety Authority
        Reputation
        Citizen attitudes
        Legitimacy of governments
        Power (Social sciences)
        Public opinion polls
        Independent regulatory commissions
        Rational-legal authority
      sug:
        subj:
          Reputation
          Citizen attitudes
          Legitimacy of governments
          Power (Social sciences)
          Public opinion polls
          European Food Safety Authority
          Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling
          Independent regulatory commissions
          Rational-legal authority
      ab: Legitimacy is a central concern for independent agencies tasked with shaping policies. While expertise‐based and reputation‐sourced authority bases are assumed to be relevant for agency legitimacy, their individual and joint effects on citizens' perceptions lack comprehensive examination. To address this gap, the study integrates insights from bureaucratic politics, bureaucratic reputation, and cognitive psychology. Our survey experiment with Dutch citizens, focusing on the European Food Safety Authority, suggests that expertise‐based authority positively affects perceived agency legitimacy, while a negative reputation has detrimental effects. Furthermore, expertise‐based authority moderates the impact of reputation, amplifying positive effects and mitigating negative ones. This implies that agencies are more susceptible to reputational threats when they lack expertise‐based authority. The study advances the theoretical tenets of bureaucratic reputation theory and offers effective strategies for agencies to strengthen their legitimacy among the most critical audience in democratic political systems—citizens.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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