Perception, trust and administrative alignment: A multivariate analysis of civil servants’ support for state governance

This study investigates the determinants of civil servants’ support toward subnational government leadership within Malaysia’s politically asymmetric federal system. Grounded in institutional trust theory (Levi & Stoker, 2000) and organizational commitment frameworks (Meyer & Allen, 1997), and informed by multi-level governance scholarship (Wang, 2025), it examines whether administrative alignment is shaped by institutional affiliation or performance-based governance quality. Using a stratified random sample of 1,278 public servants in Terengganu, the study employs multiple linear regression using ordinary least squares (OLS) to test six governance dimensions while controlling for institutional affiliation. The model demonstrates strong explanatory power, public servant welfare and equality and justice emerge as the strongest predictors of support, whereas institutional affiliation is statistically non-significant. These findings support performance-contingent interpretations of institutional trust (Levi & Stoker, 2000; Van de Walle & Bouckaert, 2003) and challenge deterministic assumptions of bureaucratic alignment in opposition-led states. The study advances a subnational administrative alignment model, demonstrating that governance quality, fairness, and leadership credibility can bridge.