A Comparison of the Administrative Subculture of Public and Private Sector Service Employees

This article compares the effectiveness of the administrative subculture of public and private sector employees by comparing the efficacy of their organizational processes. The paper provides some evidence that assumptions about the superiority of private sector administrative subculture (as measured by comparing the effectiveness of organizational communication processes in reducing task ambiguity) are probably not warranted. The perception that private sector administrative subculture is more results-orientated than public sector practices appears not to have been substantiated in this study. In contrast, ambiguity with respect to customers, promotion, superiors, and ethical situations was evident across both public and private groups however; the impact on job satisfaction outcomes was greater for public sector employees in general.