The Language of Public Encounters: Computational Measures of Complexity and Emotionality in Spoken Bureaucratic Communication

ABSTRACT Verbal communication between bureaucrats and citizens crucially determines the dynamics and outcomes of public encounters. However, so far, scholars have not sought to quantitively measure it, which limits our knowledge of the role language plays in shaping interactions between bureaucrats and clients. Addressing this gap, we develop and systematically validate computational linguistic measures of complexity and emotionality as two foundational dimensions along which bureaucratic communication varies. We thereby rely on a novel speech‐data set of 154 conversations between frontline bureaucrats and citizens, recorded at four local agencies in Germany. Content validation shows that the two measures serve to accurately capture these two concepts, whilst convergent validation yields that they conform with two alternative measures. Finally, construct validation is established by showing that they generate theoretically plausible results. The paper contributes to the literature by innovating the methodical approaches for analysing the language used during bureaucrat‐client interactions. It thereby paves the way for advancing our understanding of the manifold ways in which these interactions affect the administrative treatment and outcomes citizens experience.