Automating street‐level discretion: A systematic literature review and research agenda

Abstract

Abstract While public sector organizations continue to implement information and communication technologies (ICT), it is unclear to what extent digitalization efforts influence the discretion of street‐level bureaucrats. Understanding the relationship between public sector ICT and human discretion is an important consideration for public managers overseeing technology implementation processes and evaluating outcomes. This systematic literature review examines studies that explore the relationship between street‐level discretion and ICT use. The results show there are several mechanisms through which ICTs change human discretion, such as removing face‐to‐face interactions, standardizing processes, enhancing top‐down monitoring, increasing information exchanges, and providing decision supports. Street‐level bureaucrats adopt various strategies to resist ICT‐driven standardization, suggesting that technology implementation may alter workplace dynamics and the professional identities of frontline workers. Revealing the processes of changing discretion has implications for research and practice as more agencies expand their reliance on ICT to deliver public services, thereby incorporating new actors and institutional arrangements.