The performance of performance-based contracting in public outsourcing: a meta-regression analysis.
Performance-Based Contracting (PBC) is promoted as a model that improves results, enhances quality, reduces costs, and increases accountability. It has become a standard element of government contracting worldwide and a key component of newer pay-for-success models. However, scholarly evaluations re...
| Publicado en: | Journal of Public Administration Research & Theory Vol. 36; no. 2; pp. 250 - 267 |
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| Autores principales: | , , |
| Formato: | Literature Review |
| Publicado: |
Oxford University Press / USA
Apr2026
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=193631226&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ssf uiTerm: 193631226 longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson) uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 10531858 172N jtl: Journal of Public Administration Research & Theory issn: 10531858 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Apr2026 vid: 36 iid: 2 pid: 622 pub: Oxford University Press / USA artinfo: ui: 193631226 10.1093/jopart/muaf037 ppf: 250 ppct: 17 formats: tig: atl: The performance of performance-based contracting in public outsourcing: a meta-regression analysis. aug: au: Bel, Germà Espaillat, Pedro Esteve, Marc affil: Department of Econometrics, Statistics and Applied Economics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08007, Spain Department of Society, Politics and Sustainability, Universitat Ramon Llull ESADE, 08034, Spain Department of Political Science, University College London, WC1H 9QU, United KingdomDepartment of Global Governance, Universitat Ramon Llull ESADE, 08034, Spain su: Contracts Goal (Psychology) Contract theory Agency theory Public contracts Contracting out Subcontracting sug: subj: Contracts Goal (Psychology) Contract theory Agency theory Public contracts Contracting out Subcontracting keyword: contracting-out copyrightHolder:Public Management Research Association copyrightYear:2026 inLanguage:en meta-analysis performance-based contract public procurement publisher:Oxford University Press sameAs:https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muaf037 contracting-out copyrightHolder:Public Management Research Association copyrightYear:2026 inLanguage:en meta-analysis performance-based contract public procurement publisher:Oxford University Press sameAs:https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muaf037 ab: Performance-Based Contracting (PBC) is promoted as a model that improves results, enhances quality, reduces costs, and increases accountability. It has become a standard element of government contracting worldwide and a key component of newer pay-for-success models. However, scholarly evaluations remain scattered and often lack a solid theoretical foundation. This study conducts a meta-analysis of 740 observations from 38 studies across 10 service areas to evaluate genuine performance. Utilizing principal–agent, incomplete-contract, and goal-setting theories, we examine what influences the performance of PBC. By combining these perspectives within a single empirical framework, the paper offers a systematic test of core assumptions about incentive alignment, contract incompleteness, and goal design in public contracting. Results indicate that outcome-focused contracts are more successful than those targeting process- or output-based results. This finding provides quantitative evidence supporting incomplete-contract theory's claim that performance depends on the contractibility of outcomes and extends principal–agent logic by demonstrating when and why incentives fail in multidimensional public settings. Although context matters, factors such as residual control, collaboration, and shared goals are central to PBC success. The study thus makes a theoretical contribution by bridging economic and behavioral contracting theories and empirically grounding their predictions in public-sector evidence. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Literature Review src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: N holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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