Investigating the impact of bureacratic factors on government organisational performance in the Kingdom of Bahrain: A multiple case study approach

Abstract

This research is undertaken in response to the need to offer fresh insights to the number of models of organisational bureaucracy. The main aim of this thesis is to explore the bureaucratic factors related to governmental organisations that may influence their performance. Through conceptual and empirical research, several key factors have been identified which link organisational performance to social responsibility, job satisfaction, motivation, and decision quality. To support this research, Hofstede’s cultural dimensions were used in connection with the performance dimensions and the bureaucratic factors. In this context, the case study design used multiple sources of evidence in a triangulation strategy to contribute to developing a perspective on bureaucracy and its impact to government organisations in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Thus, a conceptual framework has been developed and proposed as part of the study. This research adopted a semi-structured interview research design in order to elicit the views of individuals and in-depth qualitative information. The findings in the context of this research confirmed that Bahrainis are highly rule-oriented, risk averse and do not readily accept change. In addition, they have a high preference for avoiding uncertainty thus they maintain rigid codes of belief and behaviour. The results of the empirical investigation have therefore enriched the growing literature of bureaucracy and performance of government organisations not only in the Kingdom of Bahrain but also in the global setting it used the Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. The result of this research may be of help to a range of human resource managers, public administrators, employees and other stakeholders in bureaucratic organisational context.