Red tape is seen as a destructive organizational force that reduces public officials’ motivation and curtails organizational performance. By increasing the time, cost, and effort required to inform the public and coordinate participation, red tape has also been said to reduce public officials’ positive attitudes toward public participation. However, research on the effects of red tape on public officials’ attitudes toward public participation remains inconclusive. This study examines how the lack of functionality and compliance burden of rules affect public officials’ attitudes toward public participation. Using cross-sectional survey data of n = 862 municipal public officials and a structural equation modeling approach, this study finds that public officials’ perceptions of the lack of functionality of rules are positively associated with attitudes toward public participation, and that perceptions of the compliance burden of rules are negatively associated with attitudes toward public participation. Points for practitioners • Red tape affects public officials’ attitudes toward public participation. • The compliance burden of rules is negatively associated with public officials’ attitudes toward public participation. • The perceived lack of functionality of rules is positively associated with public officials’ attitudes toward public participation. • The effects of red tape are multifaceted and should be examined from a multidimensional point of view.
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