Taking Context More Seriously: Managerial Networking and Performance in American and Korean Hospitals

While extensive literature on public management has suggested that management matters for performance, the role of national context in this mechanism has been significantly understudied. This article examines whether and how the impact of management on performance varies across national settings by conducting a comparative analysis of U.S. and Korean hospitals. Based on a parallel hospital manager survey and archival database in the two countries, we find that managerial networking contributes to performance in both U.S. and Korean hospitals, but its functional form varies between the two countries. These findings imply that management is the key to enhancing performance, but the effective strategy can vary depending on the national context. This study highlights the role of national context and advances the field of comparative public administration.