Government Relocation and Public Officials Compassion: The Case of Sejong City

Abstract

The Korean central government complex was relocated from Seoul, its capital city, to the newly constructed Sejong City in phases from 2012 to 2014. This study examines how the government relocation affects public officials compassion. Applying a two-way fixed effect estimation to mitigate endogeneity, I find that public officials sympathy declined significantly after the relocation and that certain management practices, such as a performance-related reward system, have exacerbated these negative effects. As a sympathetic attitude is a significant aspect of public service motivation and it positively related to government productivity, this study maintains that it is necessary for management to take heed of the disadvantageous effects of government relocation and attempt to address them.