Thorbjørn Sejr Guul

How do performance failures affect user satisfaction? With co-authors (Mads Thau and @nathanfavero.com) @mfalcon.bsky.social (assoc prof @pa-sdu.bsky.social), leverage a major negative news story on Danish social services that broke during the fielding of a user survey. In @pareview.bsky.social

Do high workloads force bureaucrats to discriminate?

In a published paper at the @thejop.bsky.social, I challenge the dominant explanation of discrimination in public service delivery. Surprisingly, I find that bureaucrats are able to handle substantial workloads without discriminating.

These results demonstrate the potential of using performance information—without increasing incentives—to promote learning in public organizations.
9/9

Moreover, as specified in our preregistered, primary hypothesis, the teachers chose actions according to the new information, such that students in the treatment group received support that better matched their skill level.
8/9

In the treatment group we find that teachers updated their beliefs according to the model, such that they placed relatively more weight on the test scores (which they are informed about) and less on their priors.
7/9

More specifically we repeatedly measured the reading skills of students in both treatment and control group using an IT-based reading test. However, only the treatment group received information on the test scores during the intervention period.
6/9

However, measuring performance may itself affect professionals’ behavior, which makes it difficult to isolate the effect of providing performance information. We designed a preregistered field experiment in which we can isolate the effect of making performance information available to teachers
5/9

We propose, based on a Bayesian model of learning, that simply providing professional teachers with performance information— without changing their extrinsic incentives—may be enough to make them update their beliefs about their students and act accordingly
4/9

Performance management is used by governments worldwide to incentivize professionals in schools and other public organizations. Yet, much research shows that these incentives may generate perverse dysfunctional effects.
3/9

Link to publishers version: doi.org/10.1093/jopa...
Link to open access version: drive.google.com/file/d/1t8BS...
2/9

Thrilled to share that our paper "A Learning Approach to the Governance of Professionals. Field Experimental Evidence" with scandersen.bsky.social has been accepted for publication in jpart1991.bsky.social

See threat and link below below 👇
1/9

In the treatment group we find that teachers updated their beliefs according to the model, such that they placed relatively more weight on the test scores (which they are informed about) and less on their priors.
7/9

More specifically we repeatedly measured the reading skills of students in both treatment and control group using an IT-based reading test. However, only the treatment group received information on the test scores during the intervention period.
6/9

However, measuring performance may itself affect professionals’ behavior, which makes it difficult to isolate the effect of providing performance information. We designed a preregistered field experiment in which we can isolate the effect of making performance information available to teachers
5/9

We propose, based on a Bayesian model of learning, that simply providing professional teachers with performance information— without changing their extrinsic incentives—may be enough to make them update their beliefs about their students and act accordingly
4/9

Performance management is used by governments worldwide to incentivize professionals in schools and other public organizations. Yet, much research shows that these incentives may generate perverse dysfunctional effects.
3/9

Link to publishers version: doi.org/10.1093/jopa...
Link to open access version: drive.google.com/file/d/1t8BS...
2/9

Our article “Unsuccessful Candidates Are More Concerned About Electoral Fairness than Election Winners” is now online @thejop.bsky.social

Using RDD and elite survey data from Denmark, we show that losing candidates express greater concern about electoral fairness.

🔗 doi.org/10.1086/734240

Thanks you so much for your visit, Elizabeth - we really enjoyed having you here ☺️

This week we have been happy have @drelizabethbell.bsky.social from University of Texas, Austin as a guest. She has presented her recent work on "Administrative Burden and the Access-Fraud Trade-Off" with @sebjilke.bsky.social , followed by an engaging discussion. Thanks for your visit, Elizabeth!

BJPolS societal views towards immigrants and ethnic minorities in Europe, focusing on resource contribution and compliance with societal norms. The text discusses a study in Denmark regarding information manipulation and its effects on societal perceptions.

NEW -

The Correlates of Ethnicity: Why the Ethnic Majority Expects That Ethnic Minorities Contribute Less to the Collective - cup.org/4lOX7jN

- @matkruse.bsky.social

#OpenAccess

@weekendavisen.dk bringer i dag en historie baseret på min, @tsguul.bsky.social og Kristian Kriegbaum Jensens artikel udgivet i AJS.

Link til Weekendavisen: www.weekendavisen.dk/2025-5/ideer...

Thrilled to share that our paper "Does Ethnic Similarity Increase Well-being?" with excellent lead author @matkruse.bsky.social and Kristian K. Jensen is out in the American Journal of Sociology.

See 🧵👇

Thrilled that my article has just been published at @apsrjournal.bsky.social! 🎉 The article argues that low statistical power is a major impediment to acquiring cumulative knowledge on questions concerning cross-national differences: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

1/ 🚀 Excited to share our latest paper in the Journal of Management: "Hic Sunt Dracones: On the Risks of Comparing the ITCV With Control Variable Correlations" 🐉

It’s open access: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Let’s talk about why this matters and what we discovered! 🧵👇

In a new article out in @pnas.org w @michaelsvarer.bsky.social @albecknielsen.bsky.social Michael Rosholm. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/..., we explore the long-term unemployment and mental health effects of active labor market programs.

Does childhood exposure to coethnics impede or promote the acquisition of citizenship?

In a new article in @pnas.org, I show that the modest presence of coethnic peers in school increases migrant children’s probability of getting 🇩🇰 citizenship later in life. 🧵👇 1/15

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

American Journal of Political Science | MPSA Journal | Wiley Online Library The disadvantages experienced by minorities and lack of societal remedies are partly attributable to native-majority citizens’ limited awareness of minority hardships. We investigate whether informin...

(1/7) 📢 New research alert!

Even when people are shown clear evidence of #discrimination, it doesn‘t change their support for anti-discrimination policies.

Read @kkrakows.bsky.social, @asmusletholsen.bsky.social, and my article in @ajpseditor.bsky.social to find out why: doi.org/10.1111/ajps...

Want to work in an inspiring and young public administration research group?

Come and join us! We are hiring

one or more Assistant Professors (tenure track) and

one or more Associate Professors in Public Administration. Application deadline: April 1, 2024.

New article alert!

In our new study, we show how the communication of rules affects the resulting burden for citizens. Easier language (while retaining the same amount of information) and better layout substantially lower learning and anticipated compliance costs

buff.ly/3toQZYB