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Performance management and “undesirable” organizational behaviour: Standardized testing in Ontario schools
Author(s) -
Ohemeng Frank,
McCallThomas Elyse
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
canadian public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.361
H-Index - 26
eISSN - 1754-7121
pISSN - 0008-4840
DOI - 10.1111/capa.12030
Subject(s) - accountability , standardized test , incentive , public sector , performance management , representation (politics) , business , organizational performance , performance measurement , public management , public relations , accounting , public economics , economics , public administration , political science , psychology , marketing , microeconomics , law , mathematics education , politics
Performance management ( PM ) is a major administrative mechanism for assessing efficiency and effectiveness, and for exacting accountability from organizations and individuals. Many have argued, however, that using PM in such ways creates perverse incentives and may lead to undesirable behaviours, such as the obstruction of accurate performance measurement in an effort to avoid public mortification. By examining the introduction of standardized testing in the Ontario public school system, this article adds to the debate on whether PM leads to undesirable behaviours and distorts the representation of actual performance by public sector employees. It argues that, while PM in the public sector may be well intentioned, it may generate a system that produces undesired results.