Street-Level Bureaucrats at the Forefront of Pandemic Response: A Comparative Perspective

Abstract

Crises’ implications for street-level implementation are understudied despite street-level bureaucracy, as the operational arm of the state, by definition, serving on the frontline of crisis treatment. Drawing on multiple public services provided by varied street-level bureaucrats’ professions in different countries, this special issue demonstrates key implications for street-level implementation during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, both as perceived by the public and by decision-makers and as practiced. Applying a comparative perspective rarely taken in street-level research exemplifies understudied variance across countries, professions, and time. Fast policymaking cycles inherent to crisis highlight overlooked upward influence of street-level bureaucrats in policymaking.