How Public Officials Perceive Algorithmic Discretion: A Study of Status Quo Bias in Policing

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Afzal, Muhammad; Panagiotopoulos, Panos
• 署名单位: University of London; Queen Mary University London
• 刊物名称: PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0033-3352
• DOI: 10.1111/puar.13957
• 发表日期: 2025
• 页码: 1385-1397
• 关键词: cognitive biases; street-level; information-technology; resistance; MODEL; implementation

摘要

Algorithms are disrupting established decision-making practices in public administration. A key area of interest lies in algorithmic discretion or how public officials use algorithms to exercise discretion. The article develops a framework to explain algorithmic discretion by drawing on status quo bias theory and bureaucratic discretion. A study with police officers in the UK shows that-while officers still value their discretion-it is resistance via the aspects of status quo bias that accounts for a more substantial explanation. Transition costs, loss aversion, and performance uncertainty determine resistance and, in turn, reluctance to delegate discretion to algorithms. The study contributes to public administration research that demonstrates the influence of cognitive biases in the increasing use of algorithms in areas like policing. The article concludes with recommendations for embedding algorithmic discretion into the professional development of public officials to mitigate sources of status quo bias.