THE ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE IN SHAPING PUBLIC POLICY OUTCOMES: A BEHAVIOURAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

The organizational culture provides a foundational mechanism through which institutions operate, dictating leadership styles, communication patterns, and employee behavior in various sectors. In the public sector, given that impacting citizens' lives is done so through policies, the internal culture of government institutions assumes a greater degree of importance. Although public policy is often understood as a process largely governed by formal procedures and political agendas, the informal norms, values, and patterns of behavior that permeate public organizations hold equal sway in shaping such policies. These cultural elements determine how decisions are made, how changes are managed, and how efficiently policies are implemented. The study thus narrows the discussion of organizational culture to examine its role in determining public policy outcomes critically, from a behavioral perspective. The study will focus on how cultural norms and institutional practices influence decision-making processes and the efficacy of policies. This discussion and view are drawn from literature across disciplines involving academic journals, government documents, books, newspapers, and magazines. The paper holds that organizational culture is one of the greatest determinants of policy success or failure.