Donald Moynihan: Friction, Frustrations, and Fear in Government Bureaucracies

“Administrative burdens” is a term for the frictions people experience when interacting with government—learning how a program works, taking the time to fill out paperwork, and experiencing the frustrations and shame that can come from the process. Sometimes this is accidental—just the result of a bureaucracy failing to think through how it interacts with citizens. But it can also be purposeful—a way for politicians and policymakers to limit or direct programs without openly admitting to it. In this conversation, Donald Moynihan describes how administrative burdens affect how citizens experience government agencies and how interactions between the three branches of federal government can get in the way of efficient and effective public service. Donald Moynihan is a public policy professor at the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and codirects the Better Government Lab at Georgetown University. He previously served as the McCourt Chair for Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and as director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s La Follette School. His work focuses on the administrative burdens citizens encounter during interactions with government. In addition to his research, Moynihan is the president of the Association for Public Policy and Management. https://donmoynihan.substack.com/