Why Do Representative Bureaucracies Perform Better

This study is concerned as much with determining if representative bureaucracies perform better as with understanding why they do so. After describing the methodology, the chapter reports on the findings from in-depth interviews with nearly three dozen senior officials in South African national departments to identify the causal mechanisms, or underlying pathways, connecting bureaucratic representation to organizational performance. Evidence indicates representative bureaucracies perform better because they empathize with and advocate for historically disadvantaged communities, are equipped with linguistic and cultural competencies to serve a diverse citizenry, and can induce compliance, cooperation, and coproduction.