People Caring Loudly: The Effects of Citizen incivility on Government Employees and Outcomes

This presentation examines the theoretical and empirical effects of uncivil behavior by citizens on individual and organizational outcomes at the local government level. Citizen incivility exacts a psychological and emotional toll on employees, increasing stress, decreasing job satisfaction, and sparking higher turnover intentions. Additionally, the presentation will theorize how these individual impacts can lead to broader organizational challenges, such as more conflict in citizen interactions and reduced service quality. Combining qualitative and quantitative data from employee survey data with insights from extant theory, this presentation underscores the importance of fostering respectful and civil interactions between citizens and local government employees for improved public service delivery.

Leisha DeHart-Davis is a professor of public administration and government at the School of Government. Her applied research focuses on workplace climate in local government organizations. DeHart-Davis's academic research addresses public sector organizational behavior, most recently, employee voice, organizational structure, and citizen and workplace incivility. She is a faculty member in the School's Master of Public Administration program and directs the Local Government Workplaces Initiative, a research program that conducts workplace climate and employee engagement research to help local governments create great workplaces. DeHart-Davis is the recipient of the 2024 Herbert Simon Award for the Scientific Study of Bureaucracy, given by the Public Administration Caucus of the Midwest Political Science Association. She is also a National Academy of Public Administration Fellow and recipient of the 2019 Gary Cornia Distinguished Lecturer given by the Romney Institute of Brigham Young University. She has published two books, the award-winning Creating Effective Rules in Public Sector Organizations and Understanding Gender Imbalance in Public Sector Leadership. Her research has also been published in academic journals including the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Public Administration Review, International Public Management Journal, Administration and Society, and Review of Public Personnel Administration. DeHart-Davis is past-president of the Public Management Research Association and a UNC Thorp Faculty Engaged Scholar. She holds a Ph.D. in public policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology.