The Role of Structural Reforms in Enhancing Employee Motivation: A Mediated Analysis of Decision-Making Hierarchy in Public Sector Organizations

In this article we discuss the role of decision-making hierarchies in mediating the effects of structural reforms on employees' motivation in public organizations. Based on PSM theory and structural empowerment perspectives, the study advances a framework that explains and tests a mediated model underlying decentralization, decision autonomy, and employee motivation. Employing a quantitative survey of public sector workers in Pakistan, the results indicate that structural re-Organisation has a direct effect on motivation and an indirect impact via improved decision-making hierarchy. SEM results support partial mediation, and indicate that the motivational effects of reforms are reinforced when employees perceive a greater direct say in decision-making processes. The research suggests that it is only through real decentralization that any significant motivational gains can be made and presents concrete recommendations for policymakers to make the reform-committed policies, also implemented. The implications of these findings for public administration theory, the role of the public in bureaucratic settings and the importance of participatory governance are proposed.