sustainability

Article
Analyzing Local Government Capacity and Performance:
Implications for Sustainable Development
NakHyeok Choi

Department of Public Administration, Gachon University, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 13120, Korea;

nchoi@gachon.ac.kr

Abstract: Local infrastructure development is a crucial goal for sustainable development, for which
local governments take charge of developmental policies. This implies that the capacity of the local
government determines the performance of the developmental policies—local infrastructure develop-
ment. In this sense, this study investigated the impact of local government capacity, measured via the
quantity and the quality of human and financial resource factors, on its performance. Moreover, the
study examined which of the multidimensional government capacity components affect performance,
controlling a competition effect or spillover effect among localities. The study analyzed panel data
containing six years (2013–2018) of information on 152 local bodies in Korea, employing the spatial
autoregressive model, which is useful for controlling geographical spatial effects. The data show that,
unlike the quality factors, the quantity of government capacity does not have a significant effect on
its performance. Furthermore, the data also indicated that there are competition effects in relation to
the performance of local development. The results imply that local governments need to improve
the quality of managerial government capacity in order to increase their sustainable development
performance.





 Keywords: developmental policy; local government; government capacity; government performance;
Citation: Choi, N. Analyzing Local sustainable development
Government Capacity and
Performance: Implications for
Sustainable Development.
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862. 1. Introduction
https://doi.org/10.3390/su13073862
Public policy can be simply divided into developmental and redistributive policies.
Redistributive policies are related to reallocating societal resources, and developmental
Academic Editor: Richard C. Feiock
policies refer to establishing the physical and social infrastructure that is necessary to
facilitate economic growth. As regards the type of policies, in many countries, the central
Received: 15 February 2021
Accepted: 25 March 2021
government takes charge of redistributive policies. This is because, at the very least, people
Published: 31 March 2021
in a country should receive equal minimum welfare benefits, regardless of where they live.
However, local governments are in charge of developmental policies due to the fact that
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral
local developments must be designed and implemented according to their own specific
with regard to jurisdictional claims in
characteristics [1].
published maps and institutional affil- Among the two types of policies, this study focuses on the developmental policies
iations. related to local development. In particular, this study analyzes the degree of infrastructure
development resulting from the developmental policies implemented by local govern-
ments and discusses implications for sustainable development. In general, sustainable
development is recognized as an integrated approach that pursues the three core values
Copyright: © 2021 by the author.
of economy, society, and the environment. Though various different kinds of sustainable
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
development goals (SDGs) have been suggested, infrastructure development is enshrined
This article is an open access article
within SDGs as a crucial element. This means that infrastructure development, as social
distributed under the terms and overhead capital (SOC), is not just a sufficient condition for sustainable development, but
conditions of the Creative Commons a necessary one. In this sense, continuous and successful promotion of infrastructure
Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// development is an important performance goal of local governments.
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ While various different determinants of the performance of local governments have
4.0/). been discussed, the most significant factor in public policy is the capacity of the government.

Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13073862 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 2 of 14

Several studies have been conducted on government capacity (GC) [2–4], reporting on the
relationship between GC and government performance [5–9]. However, several questions
remain that have not been clearly answered. First, most prior studies have not provided
a theoretical framework for the link between GC and performance. Second, such studies
have also not suggested a theoretical background for the measurement of GC. The literature
indicates that authors use their intuition and experience for measuring this. Third, prior
studies have not clearly explained which factors within GC influence performance and
which factors do not. Most studies have regarded GC as just one factor, such as the number
of civil servants; however, it should be studied in the context of more diverse and detailed
factors, with the impact of the various aspects of GC being tested. Consequently, to fill in
the knowledge gaps of the literature, this study adopted two theories: Systems theory, that
implies the dependence of policy output on input and throughput, and Resource based
theory, that demonstrates the importance of resources for better performance. By employing
these theories, this research presents the theoretical background and a framework for the
concept and measurement of GC, the relationship between GC and performance, and for
testing performance competition between local governments in the context of infrastructure
development.
Specifically, this study seeks to address three research questions pertaining to the asso-
ciation between GC and performance. First, this study tested whether local government
capacity has a positive effect on performance. Secondly, if so, which specific multidi-
mensional local government capacity components affect performance was investigated.
Finally, the study examined whether the performance of local governments is affected
by neighboring local governments. That is, the research determined whether there is a
competition effect or spillover effect between localities and in what direction this affects
performance.
To answer these questions, the study defined GC as human and financial resources,
while defining performance as infrastructure development. Then, the study gathered
data on local governments’ GC and performance in Korea, between 2013 and 2018. Local
governments in Korea consist of 17 macro-level and 226 primary-level bodies. Macro-
level bodies represent one special city (Seoul), six metropolitan cities such as Busan and
Incheon, and eight “DOs” for example Gyeonggi-do and Gangwon-do, which are similar
to provinces. Primary-level bodies fall within the jurisdiction of each macro-level body,
which affects the degree of local development. Specifically, 74 primary-level entities under
the special and metropolitan cities are relatively well developed with a higher level of
infrastructure than the other 152 ones in “Dos.” This study investigates the 152 developing
entities, focusing on the association between GC and performance by using a spatial
autoregressive model (SAR) to control spatial effects.
As explained in detail in the following sections, the findings of the study are as follows.
Not all components of GC affect the performance of developmental policies, however,
the quality of GC does. The study demonstrates that the inefficiency factor negatively
affects government performance, while fiscal autonomy of revenue collection yielded
positive effects. Additionally, the inter-local competition effect pertaining to infrastructure
development can clearly be observed.
The rest of this article is structured as follows. The next section provides the theoretical
framework and reviews prior research used to devise the hypotheses. In the third section,
the methodology of the study is described, and the results of the regression analysis are
presented. The final section discusses the implications of the findings.

2. Government Capacity and Performance

2.1. Government Capacity
Many scholars in the field of public policy have examined the concept of GC. However,
consensus has not been reached on how to define or measure it. This study reviewed
prior literature regarding the concept and the measurement of GC and endeavored to
find alternative uses for it. In the context of different research studies, the concept of
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 3 of 14

capacity was reviewed to compare how the various studies defined and utilized capacity.
Then, this study reviewed empirical research about GC that investigated management and
fiscal capacity.
The dictionary definition (https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/capacity, accessed
on 1 January 2021) of capacity is “the ability or power to do, experience, or under-
stand something,” “the maximum amount that something can contain,” or “amount
that something can produce.” A related term, capability, is defined in the dictionary
(https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/capability, accessed on 1 January 2021) as “power
or ability,” “the extent of someone’s or something’s ability,” or “forces or resources giving a
country or state the ability to undertake a particular kind of military action.” The common
ground between the meanings of capability and capacity is “ability.” While capability
focuses on “ability” or “resources,” capacity additionally encompasses the meaning of
volume to contain something [10]. For “ability,” the two concepts—capability and capacity—
have the same dictionary meaning. Academic literature rarely distinguishes between the
two terms. Most studies in the field of public administration or political science account
for the two terms as the power or the ability of government, and regard them as having
interchangeable definitions.
The first mention and conceptualization of GC occurred in a number of pioneering
studies (see Tables 1 and 2) [2–4,11]. Honadle [4] defined capacity as “the ability to antic-
ipate and influence change; make informed, intelligent decisions about policy; develop
programs to implement policy; attract and absorb resources; manage resources; and eval-
uate current activities to guide future actions.” Ingraham and Donahue [12] stated that
management capacity indicates “government’s intrinsic ability to marshal, develop, direct,
and control its human, physical, and information capital to support the discharge of its
policy directions” (p. 577). Similarly, Donahue, Selden and Ingraham [3] described man-
agement capacity as a “government’s ability to develop, direct, and control its resources to
support the discharge of its policy and program responsibilities” (p. 384). Second movers
adopted the former studies’ conceptualization and expanded or applied capacity according
to research focuses. Van Slyke [13] demonstrated management capacity as “personnel,
oversight and program audit capabilities, and the necessary communication and political
skills” (p. 296). Particularly, for management capacity, personnel must possess “contract-
management experience, policy expertise, negotiation, bargaining, and mediation skills”
(p. 296). Meanwhile, Hou, et al. [14] classified GC as “the administrative capacity approach”
and “the governance capability approach.” The former refers to aspects of the adminis-
tration that considers “the importance of policies, procedures, and resources governing
administrative action” (p. 300). The latter approach embraces external aspects such as
political influences. The authors considered capability as the rules or equilibrium that are
devised and restricted by political choice, an institution, and the rule of law—adopting the
perspective of New Institutional Economics [10].
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 4 of 14

Table 1. Concept of Capacity.

Authors Concept of Government Capacity

“the ability to anticipate and influence change; make informed, intelligent decisions
Honadle [4] about policy; develop programs to implement policy; attract and absorb resources;
manage resources; and evaluate current activities to guide future actions.”
Management Capacity is “government’s intrinsic ability to marshal, develop, direct, and
Ingraham and Donahue [12] control its human, physical, and information capital to support the discharge of its
policy directions.”
Capability of state government means “(1) to respond effectively to change; (2) to make
Bowman and Kearney [2] decisions efficiently, effectively (i.e., rationally) and responsively; and (3) to
manage conflict.”
public-management capacity as “personnel, oversight and program audit capabilities,
Van Slyke [13]
and the necessary communication and political skills”
Hou, Moynihan and Ingraham [14] “the importance of policies, procedures, and resources governing administrative action”
Topinka [15] “power”
Source: Choi [10].

2.1.1. Management Capacity

Most empirical literature has not developed its own theoretical concept of “capacity.”
The research literature asserts that the concept of GC “does not exist on its own” but rather
exists “in relation to its application” [16] (p. 6). Thus, many studies have presented their
measurement methods without a thorough discussion on the definition of GC. Carley,
et al. [17] demonstrated capacity in terms of relevant technical skills, relevant organiza-
tional experiences, adequate resources, cognitive skills, and human capital (p. 116). They
operationalized GC with two variables: policy experience and financial management. To
measure the concept of administrative capacity, Terman and Feiock [16] used five com-
ponents: overall capacity, managerial capacity, dedicated sustainability staffing, lack of
staff capacity, and lack of information resources. Terman and Feiock [18] (a) measured “ad-
ministrative capacity” using the number of financial management employees; (b) “policy
capacity” was quantified as a dummy variable coded as “1” if the city had at least one
member for sustainability programs; and (c) “management structure” was coded as “1” if
a municipality was managed using a council-manager system (p. 333).

Table 2. Definitions and Measurements of Government Capacity.

Studies Components of Capacity Measurement

Government relevant experience (the
Relevant technical skills, relevant number of years of a state’s renewable
organizational experiences, adequate portfolio standards (RPS) for the
Carley, Nicholson-Crotty and Fisher [17]
resources, cognitive skills, and human electricity policy),financial management
capital capacity (financial management scores
of GPP)
Responsiveness, efficient and effective
Bowman and Kearney [2] decision making, and conflict Factor analysis from 32 variables
management
The number of financial administrators
Ability to compete for and to manage
Collins and Gerber [19] and other government administrators for
grant contracts
every 1000 county residents
Human, physical, and information
GPP scores of four dimensions (human
capital to support the discharge of its
Jennings, et al. [20] resources, financial management,
policy directions (accepting the definition
infrastructure, information)
of Ingraham and Donahue)
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 5 of 14

Table 2. Cont.

Studies Components of Capacity Measurement

(1) The number of financial management
(1) Administrative capacity, employees,
Terman and Feiock [18] (2) Policy capacity, (2) dummy, if the city had a member for
(3) Management structure sustainability programs (1/0),
(3) Council-manager form
(1) Overall capacity,
(1) Number of financial management staff
(2) Managerial capacity,
members per 1000 residents,
Terman and Feiock [16] (3) Dedicated sustainability staffing,
(2) Council-manager form,
(4) lack of staff capacity,
(3~5) from survey questions
(5) lack information resource
Source: Choi [10].

2.1.2. Fiscal Capacity

While GC mainly concerns management capacity, a subordinate concept to GC is about
fiscal policy. It is called fiscal capacity but is also referred to as “tax capacity,” because
major revenues come from taxes [21–27]. Literature has discussed fiscal capacity chiefly as
pertaining to the ability to raise revenue. The Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental
Relations [28] defined fiscal capacity as “the resources which a taxing jurisdiction can tax
to raise revenue for public purposes” (p. 3). As the aspect focuses on how much revenue
governments can secure through taxes, some scholars prefer the term tax capacity over
fiscal capacity [27,29,30]. ACIR defines tax capacity as “the capability of a governmental
entity to finance its public services” [29] (p. 158).
The other approach to fiscal capacity focuses on the portion of government revenue
dedicated to spending. When evaluating the fiscal policy, it is critical to consider how
to secure and use the revenue. Following that rationale, higher fiscal capacity would
point to a government’s potential ability to obtain revenue, and higher fiscal capacity helps
governments to develop public services. Mikesell [31] insisted that “states with higher fiscal
capacity have greater budgetary possibilities than do those with lower capacity” (p. 545).
Similarly, Hou and Moynihan [8] used the concept of countercyclical fiscal capacity (CCFC)
and stated that fiscal capacity “also includes the ability to allocate financial resources to deal
with future events” (p. 141). CCFC indicates “the fiscal [tool] to minimize disruption from
revenue shocks” (p. 142). Borge, et al. [32] demonstrated the relationship between fiscal
capacity and government efficiency, asserting that fiscal capacity could lower efficiency.
They used government revenue as a proxy for fiscal capacity. Wang and Zhao [33] used
the concept of fiscal capacity to explain government behavior and, for measuring fiscal
capacity, employed per capita annual state revenue.
In sum, the research literature on fiscal capacity was reviewed using two aspects:
securing and using revenue. As these aspects both concern revenue, any method used to
measure fiscal capacity should choose a variable that reflects revenue. Another implication
from the review is that the measurement of fiscal capacity can vary according to the topic
of research or the purpose [10]. Mikesell [31] stated, “no single approach to capacity
measurement will meet all analytical expectations.” Thus, provided that the measurement
retains inherent attributes of fiscal capacity, the measurement method can be flexible.

2.2. Theoretical Framework for the Association between Government Capacity and Performance
This section proposes the theoretical framework of the present study by presenting
two background theories: Systems theory and Resource-Based Theory (RBT). Systems
theory provides the background logic that is used to explain how GC affects performance.
RBT concerns the measurement of GC and the reason for the significance of GC in terms of
performance.
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 6 of 14

2.2.1. Systems Theory

Systems theory is “an approach to organizations that focuses on how they translate
inputs into outputs” [34]. Historically, system thinking existed in the form of a theory
to explain organizations. However, since von Bertalanffy’s research, scholars have used
General Systems Theory (GST), which can be applied to public policy fields [35] (p. 394).
Systems theory is categorized into two approaches: closed system and open system.
The former regards an organization as a machine which is not affected by the environment.
This approach focuses on “the internal workings of the system” [34]. Therefore, it has a
mechanistic or nonliving systems approach. The open-system approach supposes that an
organization is open to the environment. Like organic or living systems, organizations
react to the impact of the environment and interact with each other [10].
However, the modern organization theory is more in tune with the open-systems
theory [34–37]. As an open-system, an organization receives “inputs of resources”, ad-
ministers transformational processes, and then produces outputs such as public services.
Even after outputs, the open-system operates as a feedback loop, a learning process for a
government (organization) to reflect an experience to the new recurring process [34]. By
cycling through the phases of the system, a government becomes a more effective and
efficient organization [10].
The most significant thing for any organization is self-preservation. Systems theory
focuses on the purpose of government (organization) and seeks the best way to fulfill the
aim—via the process of translating inputs into outputs. Two abilities are essential to an
organization’s successful processes and viability: (1) “capacity to manipulate or adapt to
its external environment” and (2) “capacity to suppress or moderate internal threats” [34]
(pp. 102–104). That is, the systems theory implies that as an open-system, an organization
must continue to improve its capacity, monitor environmental changes, and adapt to make
the best use of the changes [10].

2.2.2. Resource-Based Theory

GC is closely associated with resources. Resources remarkably affect strategies to build
capacity; resources are a feature of higher-capacity organizations. Public policy scholars
recently have acknowledged the emerging importance of resources by citing RBT [38,39].
RBT or the Resource-Based View (RBV) emerged when Wernerfelt [40] proposed the
concept, which insists that a firm’s performance is dependent on its resources. Before the
RBT, the dominant paradigm in industrial organization economics was SCP (structure-
conduct-performance), which contends that a firm’s market power impacts performance in
the industry structure [41]. According to RBT, organizations that outperform others have a
diverse portfolio of idiosyncratic resources [39,41,42]. RBT had previously been discussed
mainly in the areas of business administration and economics; however, several scholars in
public administration have accepted and used the theory [39,43–47].
Recognizing that resources are crucial to the performance of an organization, it needs
to first define the concept of “resource.” Barney and Clark [41] proposed four attributes
that a firm’s resources should have:
(a) it must be valuable, in the sense that it exploits opportunities and/or neutralizes
threats in a firm’s environment, (b) it must be rare among a firm’s current and potential
competition, (c) it must be imperfectly imitable, and (d) a firm’s organizational process
must be able to exploit it. (p. 57)
In terms of examples of resources, prior literature [38,39] reviews the concept of “re-
sources” as a broad term that refers to the diverse types of assets that an organization
can exploit to achieve performance and goals. In support of this perspective, Barney [48]
stated, “resources include all assets, capabilities, organizational processes, firm attributes,
information, knowledge, etc. controlled by a firm that enable the firm to conceive of and
implement strategies that improve its efficiency and effectiveness” (p. 101). In an empirical
study that accounted for RBT, Lee and Whitford [39] proposed six organizational resources
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 7 of 14

that predicted performance: “administrative (structural) resources, human resources, finan-

cial resources, physical resources, political resources, and reputation resources” (p. 690).
These factors affect organizational performance, which implies that RBT is meaningful in
predicting performance [10].

2.2.3. Framework for the Link between Government Capacity and Performance
Borrowing from systems theory and RBT, this study established a theoretical frame-
work linking GC and performance. First, the implication of systems theory is that output is
a result of input and throughput. That is, the performance of government depends on how
well the phases of input and throughput performed. In addition, because government is an
open-system organization, the adaptability and manipulability of the external environment
are also significant; the input and throughput phases must secure abilities (capacities).
Second, RBT implies that good resources are key factors enabling a government to exceed
the benchmarks set by its neighbors. RBT also provides a background to identify the
factors that are considered to be components of GC. An empirical study [39] supported
the rationale of RBT by considering several resources to be components of capacity (e.g.,
administrative, human, and financial resources) [10].
Based on systems theory and RBT, this study proposed a framework for the rela-
tionship between GC and performance. The framework, Figure 1, presents an open
system, in which output (performance) depends on input/throughput (GC, local needs,
and competition).

Figure Figure 1. Schematic

1. Schematic Model. Model.

Government can control or manage only GC, among the factors of input and through-
put. Thus, this study focuses on GC which is the key independent variable affecting its
performance.

3. Research Methods and Results

3.1. Research Hypotheses and Conceptual Framework
This study analyzed the link between GC and local development performance, con-
sidering the competition effect and other variables’ influences. Based on the previous
studies [7,10,39,41] and theoretical backgrounds regarding the relation between GC and
performance, I hypothesized that more capable local governments would achieve a greater
performance.

Hypothesis 1 (H1): More capable governments will achieve a greater performance.

Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 8 of 14

The study also included an analysis of the impact of surrounding localities. Studies
such as Berry and Baybeck [49] illustrate how local government policies are diffused, with
learning hypotheses and benefit competition hypotheses. In other words, development or
benchmarking by referring to the policy cases of neighboring local governments would
affect a local government. In this regard, I posed a research hypothesis asserting that
interlocal competition would affect local governments’ performance.

Hypothesis 2 (H2): The competition factor will affect performance.

3.2. Research Design and Method

3.2.1. Data and Unit of Analysis
To conduct regression analyses, I collected data on local governments’ capacity and
performance. First, the Local Government Yearbook issued by the Korea Research Institute
for Local Administration (KRILA) and the Local Finance Yearbook from the Ministry of
Public Administration and Security was used. Second, statistical data for measuring policy
environmental variables were collected and compiled nationwide from the Statistics City
Yearbook of Korea by the Korea National Statistical Office (KOSIS).
The unit of analysis was local government. Korea’s Local Autonomy System consists
of one central government; 17 high-level governments including Seoul Special City, six
metropolitan cities, and eight provinces (‘DO’); and 226 low-level local governments which
are ‘si,’ ‘gun,’ and ‘gu.’ The research selected only 152 primary-level bodies for quantitative
analysis, because the other 74 low-level bodies which fall within Seoul or six metropolises
are absolutely well developed with a higher level of infrastructure than the 152 localities.
The study pooled the data for 152 low-level local governments of Korea, from 2013 to 2018.
Consequently, this left us with 152 local governments and 760 observations for the research
model, which decreased to 152 after accounting for a one-year lag for explanatory variables.

3.2.2. Dependent and Explanatory Variables

The analysis used local infrastructure development as the dependent variable which
indicates the performance of local governments’ developmental policies. Specifically,
the dependent variable is operationalized and measured by “infrastructure development
rate” indicator which is reported by the Korea Research Institute for Local Administration
(KRILA), a government-affiliated body and established by the KRILA Act. According to
the Local Government Yearbook, annually released by KRILA, the rate is computed as the
average of water supply rate, sewer treatment rate, and urban area ratio. Specifically, the
water supply rate means the proportion of the population receiving water among the total
population (water supply population/total population). The sewerage treatment rate is
calculated from among the total population as the ratio of persons receiving related services
through public sewage treatment facilities and wastewater termination facilities. The urban
area ratio represents the proportion of densely developed territory, and in this study, the
ratio was calculated by dividing the sum of areas of residential, commercial, and industrial
urban land uses by the total city area. In this article, therefore, a higher infrastructure
development rate, integrating the three factors, indicates a better performance of local
governments.
The independent variable is GC, which was categorized into four dimensions: human
resource capacity 1 (HC1), human resource capacity 2 (HC2), financial resource capacity
1 (FC1), and financial resource capacity 2 (FC2). On the one hand, the human resource
capacity is the number of civil servants normalized by 1000 residents (HC1) and the
percentage of senior officials (HC2) in which higher values mean inefficient management.
Based on prior conceptual and empirical studies of capacity, HC1 signifies the quantity of
an organization’s resources. Some previous literature reported that larger organizations
achieved greater performance, e.g., [9,10,15,16]. While HC1 reflects the quantity of HC,
HC2 refers to the quality of HC, which is measured as the percentage of senior officials
who are high-ranking officials at Level 5 or higher. Higher percentage is regarded as a
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 9 of 14

higher degree of inefficiency, because it means that the ratio of managers to non-managers
is higher. On the other hand, financial resource capacities are set as the own source revenue
ratio (FC2) and expenditure size (FC1). The own source revenue ratio is calculated by
dividing own source (local tax and non-tax revenue) by total revenue. Expenditure size
is normalized by the number of residents, therefore FC1 means per capita expenditure of
a city.
A number of controls were also included in the model to account for other plausible
explanations of local development. Infrastructure development is associated with the local
needs of households and businesses. “Households’ needs” were measured by population
density, which indicates the number of residents per unit of area and is associated with more
development needs [50]. Additionally, the higher the number of companies, the higher the
demand for local development, because a local firm wants favorable business environments,
such as high-quality infrastructure, for improving profits. Therefore, the analysis model
controlled for “businesses’ needs,” which was operationalized as the number of companies.
Moreover, “population change” in a region affects the need for local development. The
change is computed by the sum of differences between births and deaths, and migration.
Lastly, the study controlled for “competition effect” in that local governments compete with
neighboring localities to expand and improve local infrastructure. The effect is returned by
spatial coefficients.
Table 3 presents all variables used in the model, along with their description and data
sources.

Table 3. Description of Variables in the Model.

Variable Description
ln[(water supply rate + sewer treatment rate + urban
Log infrastructure development rate
area ratio)/3]
Human Resource Capacity 1 Number of civil servants/1000 residents
Human Resource Capacity 2 Percentage of senior officials (level 5 or higher)
Financial Resource Capacity 1 Expenditure/residents
Financial Resource Capacity 2 Own source revenue ratio
Households’ needs Population Density (Residents/km2/1000)
Businesses’ needs Number of firms/1000 residents
Population change (Births − deaths + net migration)/1000
Competition effect Spatial coefficients (rho)
Data source: Local Government Yearbook, Local Finance Yearbook, Statistics City Yearbook, e-local index by
KOSIS.

3.2.3. Estimation Routine

The study used the Spatial Autoregressive Model (SAR) for panel data to control the
geographical spatial effect, competition effect, between local governments. Specifically, the
study used SAR with the fixed effect model to control the effects of time-invariant variables.
By using a geographic information system (GIS) program (GeoDa 1.18 and QGIS 3.16), the
connectivity map and weight matrix (152 × 152 dimensions) were created. I then estimated
the test model with the log of “infrastructure development rate” as the dependent variable
on the left-had side of the equation. The regression equation is as follows:

lnYit = WlnYit + Xit−1 β + ui + eit−1 , t = 1, . . . , T

where Xit are strictly exogenous regressors, W is a matrix of weights, and r is a parameter
of spatial coefficient.
The SAR model produces outputs of three kinds of impacts: direct impact, indirect
impact, and total impact. The direct effects of an explanatory variable indicate its prediction
on the dependent variable. The indirect effect would be the impact of the surrounding
neighbors’ predictors on the locality’s outcome, which can be regarded as competition
effects or spillover effects.
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 10 of 14

Additionally, the analysis model is a log-linear model, so coefficients indicate the

percentage change of dependent variable per additional one unit change of X and the
effects are calculated by using derivatives. This means that the explanatory variables affect
the rate of expenditure change ( β̂ = dY/Y
dX ), not the unit change [51]. Specifically, the change


in the dependent variable is computed as %∆y = 100 × e − 1 . β

3.3. Results: Explaining the Effect of Government Capacity on Performance

Table 4 presents the regression results. The regression model seeks to capture the
effect of GC variables—HC1, HC2, FC1, and FC2—on government performance, for which
log(infrastructure development rate) was used.

Table 4. Regressions Results for Local Development (2013–2018).

Direct Effect Indirect Effect Total Effect

Coef. SD
Coef. SD Coef. SD Coef. SD
Human Resource Capacity 1 (HC1) 0.0004 0.0015 0.0005 0.0016 0.0004 0.0012 0.0009 0.0028
Human Resource Capacity 2 (HC2) −0.0154 ** 0.0074 −0.0166 0.0076 −0.0118 0.0057 −0.0284 0.0131
Financial Resource Capacity 1 (FC1) 0.0065 *** 0.0019 0.0070 0.0019 0.0050 0.0014 0.0120 0.0033
Financial Resource Capacity 2 (FC2) 0.0020 ** 0.0009 0.0021 0.0009 0.0015 0.0007 0.0035 0.0016
Households’ needs −0.0216 0.0150 −0.0226 0.0154 −0.0162 0.0113 −0.0388 0.0265
Businesses’ needs 0.0029 *** 0.0009 0.0031 0.0009 0.0022 0.0007 0.0053 0.0015
Population change 0.0008 0.0006 0.0008 0.0007 0.0006 0.0005 0.0014 0.0011
Competition effect 0.4483 *** 0.0355
Log-likelihood 1174.218
R2 0.1476
Number of Observations 760
Number of Local governments 152
Note: *** p < 0.01, ** p < 0.05. Time period: 5 waves (DV: 2014–2018, IV: 2013–2017); DV: log(infrastructure development rate). Stata syntax:
xsmle, wmat model(sar) effects fe.

I start with the results for the two hypotheses. First, to test H1, which suggests the
relationship between GC and performance, the model used the four GC variables. Yet,
only three GC variables—HC2, FC1 and FC2—reach statistical significance. Regarding the
direct effect, the coefficient on HC2, the percentage of senior officials, which indicates the
inefficiency of local governments, for local development is negative. Specifically, if the
percentage of senior officials increases by one unit, the local infrastructure development
rate would decrease by 1.65%. It is calculated by e β − 1 for which exp(−0.0166) = 0.9835,
therefore e β − 1 = −0.0165. For FC2, which is operationalized by the own source revenue
ratio, an additional one ratio would increase the performance by 0.21%, ceteris paribus.
In addition, FC1 measured by expenditure of local governments also shows explanatory
powers in which a government spending more than others had a higher infrastructure
development rate. However, the other GC variable failed to support the association with the
dependent variable, which means that the analysis results do not support the expectation
that the size of governments operationalized by the number of civil servants affects the local
development. These results indicate that the performance of local governments is more
affected by the quality of GC rather than just the size. That is, the higher the proportion of
civil servants at non-managerial levels and the higher the proportion of its own revenue
resources, the higher the level of local government performance. It implies that managerial
efficiency and financial soundness are significant for government performance. This result
partially supports H1 which expects the positive association between GC and performance.
Second, the study found that local government infrastructure development as an
indicator of its performance is affected by neighboring localities’ policy choices. The
coefficient on the competition effect for local infrastructure development is positive, indi-
cating the presence of positive competition among neighbors. In addition, the coefficient
is statistically significant at the 5% level. This result indicates support for the inter-local
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 11 of 14

competition hypothesis (H2), predicting that local governments compete in increasing their
infrastructure development rate.
Finally, the analysis examined the effects of the control variables. The estimation
revealed that businesses’ needs are positively associated with local government perfor-
mance. In other words, localities in which there are higher level of businesses’ needs for
infrastructure development are likely to focus on upgrading their infrastructure. However,
coefficients of other variables such as households’ needs and population change are not
statistically significant. It implies demographic variables are less important, at least in this
data, for local governments’ developmental policy compared to businesses’ needs.

4. Discussion and Conclusions

The issue of uneven regional development is a critical social problem to be solved. In
general, local bodies in Korea have substantially and rapidly developed over a short period
of time compared to the past. However, there is a wide gap in the degree of development,
such as infrastructure, between urban and rural localities, and uneven development among
low-level local bodies under Seoul and the other provinces. This problem is not limited to
Korea but is also faced by other developed and developing countries. To solve the problem,
different levels of development must be mitigated, which can ensure local sustainability.
This article focuses on the importance of local government’s capacity to improve
local development level rather than other factors, because local governments are in charge
of developmental policies in a country, and GC could be improved by policy efforts.
This study, therefore, began with the question of which GC factors affect government
performance. In addition, referring to Tiebout’s hypothesis, this study examined whether
local governments compete with neighboring localities to improve their performance.
As a result, the analysis data show that not all components of GC would affect
government performance. HC1, for instance, does not have a statistical significance on
the performance. It is consistent with some previous literature [7,16,18] in which the
effect of government size on performance, such as the number of employees, was not
statistically significant [16,18] or showed negative association in particular models [7].
Meanwhile, the inefficiency of personnel composition has negative effects on government
performance, which indicates that the quality of GC, such as HC2, has explanatory power
for performance. As Ukeles [52] insisted that “working smarter” or “doing more with
less” is more crucial than the size of resources, the analysis implied that local governments
need to focus more on reducing inefficiency for enhancing GC to achieve effective local
development.
In terms of the other components of GC, the results imply that a local government with
relatively sufficient financial resources is more advantageous for superior performance,
consistent with previous studies [8,31,32]. Since local governments in Korea, similar to
other countries, are required to use a balanced budget system, a higher expenditure means
securing a larger revenue, which in turn means a high financial capacity for better perfor-
mance. Besides, the effect of own-source revenue ratio indicates that local governments
with higher financial operational autonomy are likely to devise and put into effect de-
velopmental policies independently, which is closely associated with better performance.
Furthermore, the data show that inter-local competition would play a role in improving
government performance. The local infrastructure development as the operationalized
variable for performance is affected by neighboring localities because of performance
diffusion or spillover effect.
The results of the study have strong implications about how local governments would
set directions for developmental policies. First, local governments are recommended
to review their organizational structure and human resource management. If there are
inefficient characteristics regarding personnel composition, they should try to remedy
the problems. In other words, to achieve successful local development, it is better for
local governments to pay attention to improving efficiency rather than just increasing
their size. Second, an important piece of empirical evidence is that high fiscal soundness
Sustainability 2021, 13, 3862 12 of 14

positively impacts government performance. Local governments are required to establish

a decent plan for securing their revenue sufficiently and for managing debt stability, to
meet the demands for local development. To do so, local authorities need to pursue both
strategies simultaneously: improving financial autonomy by increasing tax effort for more
own-source revenue and securing more revenue for development policy by acquiring
central government grants.
As highlighted, the contributions of the study to theory and practice are: (1) the
relationship between GC and performance was empirically investigated, proposing a theo-
retical framework and the developed measurements; (2) the proposed concept of GC and
the measurement of government performance can be applied to the field of local govern-
ment studies; and (3) the empirical model suggests that practitioners develop strategies in
terms of reducing inefficiency and securing revenue for sustainable development.
The analysis also raises questions for further investigations. First, this article ad-
dressed only one aspect among diverse dimensions of sustainable development. Though
infrastructure development is definitely a necessary condition for local sustainability espe-
cially regarding economic development, it is obvious that both social development and
environmental protection should be discussed simultaneously for clarifying sustainable
development. This caveat could be a signpost for future studies to analyze another case
of developmental policy from the perspective of sustainability. Second, the study finds
that superior quality of government capacity would be beneficial for better performance
by analyzing infrastructure development such as water and sewage. However, there are
different examples of local infrastructure which are administered by local governments.
Future studies need to investigate other infrastructures, for instance transportation and
energy, in terms of local government capacity. Third, this study categorized policies most
simply and focused on developmental policies for the purpose of research. However, as
policy typologies, there are various ways to typify a policy. For example, Paul E. Peterson
classified policies into three categories, adding allocational policies in his study, i.e., “City
Limits.” Furthermore, Theodore J. Lowi’s famous typology presented four types of policies:
distributive, redistributive, regulative, and constituent. Different kinds of policies could be
addressed by future research. Lastly, the findings of the study comprise only one strand
of evidence of the association between local government capacity and performance with
the case of Korea. Future research could examine the relationship by expanding the time
period of data or identifying additional key variables suitable for other countries.

Funding: This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the
National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2018S1A5A8027336).
Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.
Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.
Conflicts of Interest: The author declares no conflict of interest.

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