Research On The Relationship Between Work Pressure And Policy Implementation Willingness Of Grassroots River Chiefs

The river chief system is an important water environment governance policy introduced by China in recent years.Under the promotion of the central government,by the end of 2018,the river chief system had been fully established in 31 provinces(autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government),and a five-level responsibility system for river chiefs had been established.However,in policy practice,newsreports such as ineffective implementation of river chiefs and false river patrol at the grassroots level are often seen in the media,which reflects deviation in the implementation of the river chief system at the grassroots level.Therefore,it leads to thinking: What are the reasons for the implementation deviations?Which factors affect the policy implementation behavior of grassroots river chiefs?Combining with the characteristics of the pressure-type system and the background of "burden reduction at the grassroots level",through investigation,we learn that the grassroots river chiefs are faced with the "strong task and strong pressure" task execution environment jointly shaped by various pressures,so will work pressure affect the policy implementation willingness of grassroots river chiefs? In the actual interviews and surveys,the author found that two river chiefs facing the same work pressure sources and having the same degree of pressure feelings showed different willingness to implement the river chief system.How to explain this difference? In combination with existing studies,from the perspective of public service motivation,the second research question is put forward: Does public service motivation play a moderating role between work pressure and policy implementation willingness?The study first reviewed the relevant literature on policy implementation willingness,work pressure,public service motivation and the river chief system,and found that there is currently no direct literature on the relationship between grassroots river chiefs’ work pressure,policy implementation willingness,and public service motivation.Therefore,the study attempts to explore the relationship between the three,hoping to fill the gaps in existing research,and also looking forward to making feasible suggestions for promoting the effective implementation of the river chief system.On the basis of literature review and actual investigation,the study sorts out the specific content of work pressure from the four pressure source dimensions of superior leadership,work load,work responsibility and career expectations.And based on the analysis framework of “pressure source—pressure perception—pressure response—response consequences” provided by ISR stress model,a conceptual data model is constructed with four dimensions of work pressure as independent variable,policy implementation willingness as dependent variable,and public service motivation as moderating variable.In the empirical part,the study designed a survey questionnaire according to the existing mature scale,and visited 130 villages along the river in 14 towns/sub-districts in 3 districts and counties along the 4 main rivers of the Xiaoqing River system,and collected 121 valid questionnaires in Zibo City,Shandong Province.Based on the collected sample data,this paper conducted model verification and hypothesis testing with the help of SPSS 25.0 and Smart PLS 3.3.2,and finally drew the following conclusions :(1)The pressure brought by workload has a significant negative impact on policy implementation willingness;(2)The pressure brought by work responsibility has a significant positive impact on the policy implementation willingness;(3)The moderating effect of public service motivation on the relationship between work pressure and policy implementation willingness has not been verified,but public service motivation itself has a significant positive impact on policy implementation willingness.Based on the above analysis results,the study tries to propose some enlightenments to promote the implementation of the "last mile" of the river chief system at the grassroots level from the perspective of the policy implementation subject :(1)Reduce the workload of grassroots river chiefs.By adjusting the assessment method,optimizing the river patrol system and reducing the work overlap,the burden and pressure for grassroots river chiefs should be reduced.(2)Enhance the responsibility consciousness of grassroots river chiefs.The list of job responsibilities should be further refined,and the river chief himself should also enhance his sense of responsibility,so as to exert the positive stimulation effect of the pressure brought by job responsibilities on the implementation willingness.(3)Cultivate the public service motivation of grassroots river chiefs.By strengthening the guidance of Party building and carrying out public service motivation training,the level of public service motivation of grassroots river chiefs should be gradually improved and their enthusiasm for river and lake governance should be enhanced.