DOI
https://doi.org/10.25772/W5A2-SE84
Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0001-3451-534X
Defense Date
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Public Policy & Administration
First Advisor
Dr. Sarah-Jane Brubaker
Second Advisor
Dr. Wenli Yan
Third Advisor
Dr. Dana Born
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Niraj Verma
Abstract
This dissertation examines public administration leaders’ perceptions within the executive branch of the state government studied to determine if the components of radical candor, care personally and challenge directly, are associated with the sense of belonging in a public administration setting. Questions from surveys conducted by the state government studied were used to create the variables analyzed in this study. To the researcher’s knowledge, this is the first study to apply components from the Radical Candor® Framework to determine a relationship with sense of belonging in a public administration setting.
The significance of these components was tested through a quantitative, non-experimental design using secondary pooled data captured by the state government executive branch surveyed. The sample population for this study consisted of eight department cabinet level public administrator teams in the executive branch of a state government (e.g., Department Director, Department Deputy Director, Department Legislative Liaison, and Division Director) from 2022 to 2024 – a total of 1,386 respondents. The dependent variable was sense of belonging. An ordinal logistic regression was performed to test for significance and both independent variables were found to be significant at p < 0.05: care personally (p < .001, odds-ratio 1.689) and challenge directly (p = .001, odds-ratio 1.129). These findings suggest that the executive branch of the state government examined should prioritize supporting a feedback culture of radical candor. Further, these findings reaffirm the value of radical candor as an influencing factor on the sense of belonging in a public administration setting.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
8-3-2025